THE   HOUSE  WITH   THE  SILVER   DOOR. 

WHEN  KNIGHTS  WERE  BOLD. 

DIXIE  KITTEN. 

AN  OLD,  OLD  STORY-BOOK. 

THE  CHAUCER  STORY  BOOK. 

LETTERS  FROM  COLONIAL  CHILDREN. 

AMERICAN  HERO  STORIES. 

THE  STORY  OP  THE   ROMAN  PEOPLE. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GREEK  PEOPLE. 

THE  GOLDEN  GOOSE  AND  OTHER  FAIRY 

TALES. 

THE  CHRIST  STORY. 
OLD  BALLADS  IN  PROSE. 

All  of  the  above  are  illustrated. 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY  . 

BOSTON  AMD  NHW  YORK 


When  Knights  were  Bold 


rTNELS 


When 
Knights  were  Bold 

By 

Eva  March  Tappan 


BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 

Houghton  Mifflin  Company 


< 


COPYRIGHT,    I9II,    BY    EVA    MARCH    T£PDAN 
ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 

Published  October 


PREFACE 

THIS  book  is  in  no  degree  an  attempt  to  relate  the  involved  and 
intricate  history  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Its  plan  is,  rather,  to  pre- 
sent pictures  of  the  manner  of  life  and  habits  of  thought  of  the 
people  who  lived  between  the  eighth  and  fifteenth  centuries.  Our 
writings  and  our  everyday  conversation  are  full  of  their  phrases 
and  of  allusions  to  their  ideas.  Many  of  our  thoughts  and  feelings 
and  instincts,  of  our  very  follies  and  superstitions,  have  descended 
to  us  from  them.  To  become  better  acquainted  with  them  is  to 
explain  ourselves.  In  selecting  from  the  enormous  amount  of 
material,  I  have  sought  to  choose  those  customs  which  were  most 
characteristic  of  the  times  and  which  have  made  the  strongest 
impression  upon  the  life  of  to-day,  describing  each  custom  when 
at  its  height,  rather  than  tracing  its  development  and  history.  I 
hope  that  the  volume  will  be  found  sufficiently  full  to  serve  as 
a  work  of  reference,  and  sufficiently  interesting  to  win  its  way 
as  a  book  of  general  reading^ 

EVA  MARCH  TAPPAN 

Worcester )  Afass. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER   I.      PAGE,  SQUIRE,   AND   KNIGHT 

Pages  brought  up  in  the  castles  of  friendly  knights  —  their  amuse- 
ments —  taught  to  sing,  play  backgammon  and  chess,  to  respect 
the  Church,  to  be  u  serviceable,"  obedient,  and  courteous,  to 
choose  a  "lady-love  in  chivalry."  The  page  aids  his  lord  in 
battle,  learns  to  ride,  to  use  weapons,  to  swim,  box,  and  fence, 
and  also  to  hunt  and  to  hawk.  The  squire  serves  at  table, 
shares  the  amusements  of  the  hall,  practices  more  severe  out- 
of-door  exercises  —  the  quintain  —  duties  of  the  u  squire  of  the 
body"  —  becoming  a  knight  —  the  accolade  essential  —  cut- 
ting the  hair  —  the  bath  —  bed  —  change  of  garments  —  fast- 
ing—  the  vigil  of  arms  —  arming  the  young  knight  —  receiving 
the  accolade  —  the  blessing  of  the  Church  —  the  rejoicing 


CHAPTER   II.      THE   KNIGHT'S   ARMS   AND   ARMOR 

The   lance  —  sword  —  helmet  —  crest  —  chausses  —  hauberk  —     \S 
ring  armor  and  its  dangers  from  battle-axe  and  hammer —  plate 
armor — the  dagger  of  mercy  —  golden  spurs  —  shield  —  baldric 
—  tabard,  or  surcoat  —  coats  of  arms  —  names  and  significance 
of  swords  —  Arabian  horses     .  1 8 


CHAPTER   III.      JOUSTS   AND   TOURNAMENTS 

The  knight  errant  —  the  joust  at  castle  and  crossroad  —  the  joust 
of  peace  and  "  to  the  extreme  "  —  the  proclamation  of  a  tour- 
nament —  lodging  the  knights  —  a  merry  courtyard  —  the  final 

vii 


Contents 

preparations  —  the  lists  —  the  galleries  —  what  weapons  were 
allowed  —  how  honors  were  counted  —  entering  the  lists  — 
u  Let  go  !  "  —  the  "  Queen  of  Love  and  Beauty  "  —  bestow- 
ing the  prizes  —  the  ball  —  teachings  of  the  tournament  —  the 
duel  of  justice  —  the  test  of  endurance,  of  cold  water,  of  boil- 
ing water,  of  hot  iron — u  benefit  of  clergy  "  .  .  .  .28 


CHAPTER   IV.      HOW   TO    CAPTURE   A   CASTLE 

Fortifications  of  earth  and  of  wood  —  sites  of  the  Castle  of  Chillon 
and  of  Chateau  Gaillard  —  outworks  —  "  curtains  "  —  moat  — 
drawbridge  —  portcullis  —  outer  court  —  middle  court —  inner 
court  —  buttresses  —  battlements  —  keep  —  batters  —  machi- 
colations —  postern  gate  —  three  methods  of  attacking  a  castle 

—  Greek  fire  —  the  "  cat  "  or  "  rat  "  —  the  bosson  —  balista 

—  mantelet  —  cannon  —  trebuchet  —  mangonel  —  catapult  — 
espringal  —  the  siege  of  the  "Saucy  Castle"  —  its  capture  — 
the  "  Peace  of  God  "  —  the  "  Truce  of  God  "  —  the  "  right  of 
sanctuary"  —  u abjuring  the  realm " 52 


CHAPTER   V.      DAILY   LIFE   IN   A   CASTLE 

The  castle  and  its  court  —  the  hall  —  beds  and  bedrooms  —  their 
furnishings — discomforts  —  remarkable  fashions  of  dresses  and 
headdresses  —  men's  clothes  —  lack  of  cleanliness  —  sumptu- 
ary laws  —  furnishings  of  the  hall  —  tapestry  —  feasting  — 
bills  of  fare  —  "subtleties" — recipe  for  serving  a  swan  — 
bread  —  dishes  —  trenchers,  knives,  spoons,  and  forks  —  linen 
—  filthy  floors  —  music  —  minstrels  —  wandering  singers  — 
jugglery  —  jesters  —  women  dancers  —  home  employments  — 
the  teaching  of  girls  —  visitors  —  "  homage  "  —  "  above  the 

•*" 75 

viii 


Contents 

CHAPTER   VI.      LIFE   ON   A   MANOR 

Feudal  tenure  —  the  vassal  —  "  doing  homage  "  —  "  money-fiefs  " 

—  military  service  —  "  aids  "  —  "  heriot  "  —  u  relief  "  —  the 
feudal   system   a   network  of  lords  and  vassals  —  the  "  liege 
lord  "  —  slaves,   villeins,   free   tenants  —  manor  house  —  the 
"  solar  "  —  the    three-field    system  —  "  balks  "   and   strips  — 
u  extents  "  —  work  required  of  the  tenants  —  "  boon  works  " 

—  dues  —  the  manor  court  —  the  reeve,  bailiff,  steward,  and 
accountant  —  economic  independence  of  the  manor — hard  life 
of  the  tenants  —  buying  a  release  from  service  —  entering  the 
Church  —  effect  of  Crecy,  the  Black  Death,  and  the  Peasants' 
Revolt  —  the  survival  of  old  beliefs  and  customs        .       .       .102 

CHAPTER   VII.      PILGRIMAGES   AND    CRUSADES 

Why  people  went  on  pilgrimage  —  the  Canterbury  Pilgrims  — 
sights  at  Canterbury  —  ampullae  —  Canterbury  bells  —  tokens 
of  shrines  —  scallop  shells  —  the  "  Pilgrim's  Road,"  -  -  the 
u  Palmer's  Way  " —  the  Walsingham  Green  Way  —  shrines 
on  the  Continent  —  sham  pilgrims  —  pilgrimage  to  the  Holy 
Land  —  aids  to  the  pilgrim  —  service  before  starting  on  pil- 
grimage —  the  common  route  to  Palestine  —  dangers  of  the 
way  —  palmers  —  merchant  pilgrims  —  cruelty  shown  to  pil- 
grims—  Peter  the  Hermit  —  the  Council  of  Clermont  —  "God 
wills  it!"  —  the  first  crusade  —  Jerusalem  is  captured  —  other 
crusades  —  Richard  the  Lionhearted  —  the  children's  crusade 

—  changes  wrought  in  Europe  by  the  crusades    .       .       .       .123 

CHAPTER   VIII.      MILITARY   ORDERS,    MONKS,  AND 
MONASTERIES 

The  Order  of  Hospitallers  —  the  knights  as  warriors  —  in  Cyprus, 
Rhodes,  and  Malta  —  the  Order  of  Templars  —  their  suppres- 

ix 


Contents 

sion  —  the  rule  of  Saint  Benedict  becomes  lax  —  the  founda- 
tion and  customs  of  Cluny — the  "Congregation  of  Cluny  " 

—  the  Order  of  Grammont  —  the  Carthusians  —  the  Grande 
Chartreuse  —  "  Charter-houses  "  —  the  Chartreuse  of  to-day 

—  the  Cistercians  —  Saint  Bernard  —  plan  of  the  convents  — 
the  copying  of  books  —  the  work  and  care  of  a  convent — the 
different  officers  —  hospitality — struggles  between  monasteries 

and  towns  —  value  of  the  work  of  the  monasteries     .       .       .149 


CHAPTER  IX.  HERMITS,  FRIARS,  AND  MISSIONARIES 

The  hermit  of  romance  —  different  kinds  of  hermits  —  hermits  who 
dwelt  by  bridges  —  false  hermits  —  recluses —  The  Ancren  Riwle 
—  Saint  Francis  and  u  Brother  Matteo  "  —  the  work  of  the 
Franciscans  —  the  sermon  to  the  birds  —  the  Poor  Ladies  — 
the  Penitent  Men  and  Women  —  the  Dominicans  —  excom- 
'munication  —  interdicts  —  the  Waldenses  —  the  Albigenses  — 
the  Inquisition  —  the  a  secular  arm  "  —  Saint  Patrick  —  the 
fire  on  the  hill  of  Slane —  Saint  Augustine  in  England  —  Saint 
Boniface  in  Germany  —  the  Oak  of  Thor  —  martyrdom  of 
Saint  Boniface  —  Charlemagne  converts  the  Saxons  —  Witte- 
kind  becomes  a  missionary — King  Olaf  forces  Christianity 
upon  the  Norwegians 175 


CHAPTER   X.      LIFE     IN     TOWN 

The  origin  of  towns  —  charters — the  founding  of  Hull — free 
towns — Winchelsea  —  towns  of  Italy,  Spain,  and  France  — 
peculiar  customs  of  towns — a  city — the  town  as  private  pro- 
perty—  town  walls — houses,  roofs,  and  windows — town  halls 
—  apprenticeship — the  journeyman  — the  master — great  mer- 
chants—  small  tradesmen  and  their  houses  —  signs — streets — 

X 


Contents 

projecting  stories  —  gardens  —  instructions  for  gardening — the 
moat  around  London  —  lofty  towers — street  rioters  —  the  cook- 
shop  by  the  river — peculiar  hospitals  —  giving  away  food  — 
schools  —  rhetorical  contests  between  the  boys  —  "  Paul's  pig- 
eons "  —  "  Anthony's  pigs  "  —  cock  fighting  —  athletics  —  slid- 
ing —  skating  —  military  practice  —  bear  and  bull  baiting  — 
the  Smithfield  horse  market  —  pigs  forbidden  to  roam  about  the 
streets.  206 


CHAPTER  XI.     MERCHANT  GILDS  AND  CRAFT  GILDS 

Gilds  for  all  purposes  —  objects  of  the  merchant  gilds  —  the 
wealth  and  independence  of  these  gilds  —  craft  gilds  —  their 
rules  to  secure  good  work  —  their  care  of  the  gildsmen  —  feast 
days  and  patron  saints  —  origin  of  mystery  plays  —  their 
character  —  Satan  as  clown  —  "  Hell  mouth  "  —  mysteries  pass 
into  the  hands  of  the  gilds  —  acted  on  Corpus  Christi  day  — 
pageants  —  cycles  of  plays  —  the  plays  become  a  burden  —  the 
Lord  Mayor's  procession  the  last  survival  of  trade  plays.  232 


CHAPTER   XII.      HOW   GOODS   WERE   SOLD 

Sale  of  goods  from  the  houses  of  the  makers,  by  pedlars,  and  at 
markets  —  customs  of  the  market  —  the  market  cross  —  the 
u  Rolands  "  —  the  court  of  pieds-poudres  —  tolls  —  shops  in 
towns  —  the  right  to  hold  fairs  —  laws  and  customs  of  the  fair 
—  all  classes  represented  —  amusements  —  prices  kept  steady 
by  fairs  —  Stourbridge  fair  —  Winchester  fair  —  specialties  of 
different  fairs  —  Saint  Bartholomew's  Fair  —  Beaucaire  —  Leip- 
sic  —  the  fair  of  Nijni-Novgorod  —  bringing  goods  from  the 
East  to  Venice  —  discovery  of  a  new  route  to  India  —  route 
from  southern  to  northern  Europe  —  "  Merchants  of  the  Staple  " 
— "  staple  towns  "  —  wool  —  "  Merchants  Adventurers  "  —  the 

xi 


Contents 

Hanseatic  League —  piracy  —  the  "  factories  "  of  the  League  — 
its  power  in  Scandinavia,  Denmark,  Russia,  the  Netherlands  — 
the  League  in  England  —  "sterling"  money — the  Steelyard 
—  English  jealousy  of  the  League — value  of  the  League.  247 


CHAPTER   XIII.      SCHOOLS   AND   LITERATURE 

Severity  of  the  schools  —  "  the  island  of  saints  and  scholars  "  — 
the  "  ollave  "  and  his  honors  —  the  Venerable  Bede  —  Charle- 
magne's care  of  the  schools  —  the  palace  school  —  Alcuin  — 
Alfred's  interest  in  education  — textbooks — the  trivium  — the 
quadrivium  —  how  numbers  were  expressed  —  the  "  oblati  "  — 
theuexternes"  —  the  founding  of  universities — "nations" 
wandering  students  —  the  growth  of  a  heroic  poem  —  Beowulf — 
the  Nibelungenlied — the  Cid  —  romances  of  Charlemagne  — 
"A  Roland  for  an  Oliver" — the  Song  of  Roland  —  Taillefer — 
King  Arthur  —  the  Round  Table  —  Galahad  —  the  Holy 
Grail  —  the  Heimskringla  —  the  Edda  and  the  Younger  Edda 
—  Frithiof — romances  of  Alexander — the  "  beast  epic  "  — 
"bestiaries" — Mandeville  —  crusade  tales  —  the  Romance  lan- 
guages—  rhyme  and  accent  —  the  langue  d'oc  and  the  languc 
d'oeil  —  troubadours  —  Froissart  —  the  trouveres —  Don  Quix- 
ote —  the  minnesingers  —  Dante  —  Chaucer.  276 

CHAPTER   XIV.      SCIENCE   AND    MEDICINE 

Interest  in  natural  phenomena  —  mistaken  basis  of  astronomy  — 
comets — horoscopes — thebusinessof  the  doctor — medicines  of 
the  day  —  exorbitant  charges  —  barbers  as  physicians  —  talis- 
mans —  runes  —  philters  —  witchcraft  —  the  "  evil  eye  "  — 
the  four  "  humors  "  —  fear  of  alchemists  —  Friar  Bacon  and  the 
brazen  head —  false  notions  of  the  alchemists  —  the  "  universal 
solvent  "  —  the  "  elixir  of  life  "  — the  "  philosopher's  stone" 

xii 


Contents 

—  gunpowder  —  Roger  Bacon's  predictions — the  earth  a 
sphere  —  supposed  wonders  of  distant  lands  —  Br ester  John  — 
imaginative  natural  history  —  the  phoenix  —  the  mandrake  — 
methods  of  divination  —  the  "  Witches'  Sabbath  "  —  the  be- 
lief in  analogy  —  false  beliefs  —  imagination  rather  than  observ- 
ation —  the  need  of  common  sense.  312 


CHAPTER   XV.     ARCHITECTURE  AND   THE   ARTS 

Saint  Sophia  —  Byzantine  architecture  —  Saint  Mark  —  the  horses 
of  Saint  Mark  —  the  Alhambra  —  the  Court  of  Lions  —  Ro- 
manesque architecture  —  the  Gothic  architecture  —  the  pointed 
arch — characteristics  of  Gothic  architecture —  tessellated  floors 
—  mosaics  —  fresco  —  Cimabue  —  Giotto  —  Fra  Angelico  — 
diptychs — triptychs  —  illuminating  —  cost  of  books — colored 
glass — enamel  —  sculpture  —  the  church  as  a  school  —  the 
amount  of  gold  and  silver  used  in  churches  —  King  Alfred's 
jewel  —  Saint  Eloy  —  embroidery  —  tapestry  —  the  Bayeux 
Tapestry  —  the  organ  —  the  pageant  of  Queen  Isabella  —  cor- 
onation and  reception  of  Henry  VI  —  characteristics  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  338 


When  Knights  were  Bold 


LEAVING    THE    CASTLE 


WHEN  KNIGHTS  WERE  BOLD 

CHAPTER  I 

PAGE,  SQUIRE,  AND  KNIGHT 

IT  must  have  been  a  sight  well  worth  seeing  when  a 
knight  mounted  his  horse  and  galloped  away  from  a  cas- 
tle. Of  course  his  armor  was  polished  and  shining,  and, 
as  Lowell  says  of  Sir  Launfal,  he  "  made  morn  through 
the  darksome  gate."  The  children  of  the  castle  espe- 
cially must  have  watched  him  with  the  greatest  interest. 
The  girls  looked  wistfully  at  the  scarf  or  glove  on  his 
helmet,  each  one  hoping  that,  he  who  would  some  day 
wear  her  colors  would  be  the  bravest  man  that  ever 
drew  a  sword.  As  for  the  boys,  they  could  hardly  wait 
for  the  day  to  come  when  they,  too,  could  don  glitter- 
ing armor  and  sally  forth  into  the  world  in  quest  of 
adventures. 

Even  the  youngest  of  these  children  knew  that  a  boy 
must  pass  through  long  years  of  training  before  he  could 
become  a  knight.  This  began  when  he  was  a  small  child, 
perhaps  not  more  than  seven  years  old.  It  was  not  the 
custom  for  the  son  of  a  noble  to  be  brought  up  in  the 

I 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

home  of  his  father.  He  was  sent  for  his  education  and 
training  to  the  castle  of  some  lord  of  higher  rank  or 
greater  reputation,  sometimes  to  the  court  of  the  king. 
He  was  taught  to  look  with  the  utmost  respect  upon  the 
man  who  trained  him  to  be  a  knight,  to  reverence  him 
as  a  father,  and  to  behave  toward  him  with  humility  and 
meekness.  Even  if  the  time  ever  came  when  they  were 
fighting  on  opposite  sides,  the  foster  son  must  never  harm 
the  man  whose  castle  had  been  his  home.  In  those  days 
of  warfare  and  bloodshed,  the  king  himself  might  well 
be  glad  to  have  as  devoted  supporters  and  friends  a  band 
of  young  men  who  had  been  carefully  trained  in  the 
practice  of  arms.  It  is  no  wonder  that  kings  and  nobles 
looked  upon  it  as  a  privilege  to  receive  these  boys  into 
their  castles.  Indeed,  when  their  fathers  were  inclined 
to  keep  them  at  home,  the  king  sometimes  demanded 
that  they  be  sent  to  him. 

The  boys  of  the  days  of  knighthood  were  npt  so  very 
different  from  those  of  to-day,  and  many  of  their  amuse- 
ments were  the  same  as  now.  They  had  various  games  of 
ball,  they  played  marbles,  they  see-sawed,  and  walked  on 
stilts,  much  as  if  they  belonged  to  the  twentieth  century. 
Of  course  they  played  at  being  knights,  just  as  boys  to-day 
play  at  being  merchants  or  manufacturers.  There  is  an 

2 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

old  picture  of  some  pages,  as  these  boys  were  called,  play- 
ing that  two  toy  knights  mounted  on  wooden  horses  are 
having  a  contest.  The  two  horses  are  pushed  toward  each 
other,  and  if  either  knight  is  struck  by  the  spear  of  the 
other  and  thrust  out  of  his  place  he  is  vanquished. 


s 


PLAYING    AT    TOURNAMENTS 


This  was  only  play,  and  there  were  many  things  that  a 
page  must  learn  and  learn  thoroughly  before  he  was  four- 
teen or  fifteen.  How  much  of  "book  learning"  was  given 
him  is  not  known.  Probably  the  custom  differed  in  differ- 
ent places.  In  most  cases,  it  could  not  have  been  a  great 
amount,  perhaps  only  a  little  reading,  and  it  seems  to  have 
been  regarded  as  no  disgrace  to  a  knight  if  he  did  not  even 
know  his  letters.  He  must  learn  to  sing,  however,  and  to 

3 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

play  his  accompaniments  on  the  harp;  and  he  must  play 
backgammon  and  chess,  for  these  games  were  looked  upon 
as  accomplishments  which  no  gentleman  could  be  with- 
out. He  was  taught  to  say  his  prayers  and  to  have  respect 
for  the  Church  and  religion.  It  was  especially  impressed 
upon  him  that  he  must  be  "  serviceable/'  that  is,  he  must 
wait  upon  the  ladies  and  lords  of  the  castle.  He  must  run 
on  errands  for  them  and  he  must  do  their  bidding  in 
all  things,  for  it  was  an  honor  to  him  to  be  permitted 
to  serve  them.  A  page  who  was  disobedient  would  have 
been  scorned  and  despised  by  the  other  pages,  for  they 
all  hoped  to  become  knights,  and  no  true  knight  would 
refuse  to  obey  the  commands  of  his  lord  or  the  gentler 
behests  of  his  lady-love.  Such  a  one  would  have  been 
looked  upon  as  no  knight,  indeed,  but  rather  as  a  rude, 
boorish  churl.  The  page,  or  valet  or  damoiseau  or  babee, 
as  he  was  also  called,  must  always  be  gentle  and  polite ; 
for  the  knight  was  an  ideal  gentleman,  and  the  gentle- 
man must  never  fail  in  courtesy.  There  is  a  quaint  little 
volume  called  "The  Babees'  Book  "  which  tells  just  how  a 
boy  who  wished  to  become  a  knight  was  expected  to 
behave.  When  he  entered  the  room  of  his  lord,  he  must 
greet  all  modestly  with  a  "  God  speed  you,"  and  he  must 
kneel  on  one  knee  before  his  lord.  If  his  lord  spoke  to 

4 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

him,  he  must  make  an  obeisance  before  answering.  He 
must  not  lean  against  a  post  or  handle  things,  but  stand 
quietly,  listen  to  what  was  said,  and  speak  when  he  was 
spoken  to.  When  the  meal  was  prepared,  he  must  bring 
water  for  hand-washing,  presenting  it  first  to  his  lord,  and 
must  hold  a  towel  ready  for  him  to  use,  a  most  desirable 
part  of  the  preparation  for  a  meal,  as  it  was  the  custom  for 
two  persons  to  use  the  same  trencher,  or  wooden  plate, 
and  forks  were  not  in  use.  When  the  time  came  for  the 
page  himself  to  eat,  he  must  not  lean  upon  the  table  or 
soil  the  cloth  or  throw  any  bones  upon  the  floor.  If  he 
chanced  to  use  the  same  trencher  with  any  one  of  higher 
rank  than  he,  he  must  take  meat  from  the  trencher  first, 
but  he  must  be  especially  careful  not  to  take  the  best 
piece. 

Thus  it  was  that  the  indoor  life  of  the  page  passed. 
Most  of  his  indoor  teaching  was  given  him  by  the  ladies 
of  the  castle.  It  was  they  who  taught  him  to  choose  a 
lady-love  for  whose  sake  he  was  to  be  ever  brave  and 
pure  and  modest.  The  story  is  told  of  one  shy  little  page 
at  the  court  of  France  that  when  one  of  the  court  ladies 
asked  whom  he  loved  best,  he  replied,  "  My  lady  mother 
first,  and  after  her  my  sister/'  "  That  is  not  what  I  mean/' 
said  the  lady.  "  Tell  me  who  is  your  lady-love  in  chiv- 

5 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

airy/'  The  little  fellow  admitted  that  he  had  none.  After 
a  severe  lecture  because  he  was  so  unchivalric,  he  chose 
a  little  girl  of  his  own  age.  "  She  is  a  pretty  little  girl," 
replied  the  lady,  "  but  she  cannot  advise  you  or  help  you 
on  as  a  knight.  You  must  choose  some  lady  of  noble 
birth  who  can  give  you  counsel  and  aid.  Then  you  must 
do  everything  in  your  power  to  please  her.  You  must  be 
courteous  and  humble  and  strive  with  all  your  might  to 
win  her  favor." 

Out  of  doors,  too,  the  page  had  much  to  learn.  If  his 
lord  went  to  the  field  of  battle,  the  page  went  with  him 
to  help  him  in  every  way  that  a  boy  could.  He  was  in 
no  danger,  for  a  knight  who  attacked  a  page  would  have 
been  shamed  and  disgraced.  As  for  riding,  of  course  he 
had  not  been  allowed  to  reach  the  age  of  seven  without 
knowing  how  to  sit  on  a  horse ;  but  now  riding  became 
a  matter  of  business.  It  was  not  a  mere  canter  on  a  pony 
whenever  he  took  a  fancy ;  it  was  a  careful  training,  for 
he  must  practice  leaping  over  ditches  and  walls,  he  must 
be  able  to  spring  into  the  saddle  without  touching  the 
stirrup,  and,  in  short,  he  must  learn  to  be  as  perfectly  at 
home  on  the  back  of  a  horse  as  on  his  own  feet.  Light 
weapons  were  provided  for  him,  and  he  must  learn  how 
to  use  sword  and  lance  and  bow,  and  how  to  swim  and 

6 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

box  and  fence.  He  must  meet  the  other  boys  of  the  cas- 
tle in  mock  contests.  These  were  carefully  watched  by 
the  elders,  who  were  eager  to  see  whether  or  not  the  son 


A    KING    RECEIVING    A    KNIGHT 


of  some  valiant  knight  bade  fair  to  maintain  the  repu- 
tation of  his  father. 

A  most  important  part  of  the  boy's  instruction  was 
hunting,  or  the  "  mystery  of  the  woods/'  and  hawking, 
or  the  "  mystery  of  the  rivers,"  so  called  because  it  was 
often  pursued  on  the  open  banks  of  streams.  The  page  who 

7 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

understood  hawking  had  conquered  a  most  complicated 
branch  of  his  education.  He  had  to  learn  the  different 
kinds  of  falcons,  how  to  train  the  birds  to  throw  them- 
selves upon  their  prey,  how  to  feed  them,  and  what  calls 
to  use  with  them.  There  was  a  rule  for  every  act;  for 
instance,  there  was  only  one  way  in  which  a  hawk  might 
be  properly  carried.  The  master's  arm  must  be  held  par- 
allel with  his  body,  but  not  touching  it,  and  the  forearm 
must  be  held  out  at  a  right  angle  as  a  perch  for  the  bird. 
A  man  who  would  practice  the  mystery  of  the  rivers  and 
did  not  carry  his  falcon  in  the  approved  fashion  would 
have  been  the  laughing-stock  of  his  companions.  Even 
pages  had  their  own  falcons,  and  a  taste  for  hunting  and 
hawking  was  looked  upon  as  a  mark  of  noble  blood. 
When  a  page  was  sent  to  bear  a  letter,  he  sometimes 
carried  his  falcon  on  his  wrist  for  company  on  the  way. 
There  were  possible  dangers  on  every  journey,  but  I 
fancy  that  the  page  was  always  glad  to  be  sent  with  a 
message,  especially  if  it  was  a  pleasant  one,  for  then  he 
was  sure  of  a  warm  welcome  and  generous  gifts  from  the 
happy  recipient. 

During  the  seven  or  eight  years  that  he  was  a  page, 
the  boy  was  always  looking  forward  to  the  time  when 
he  would  become  a  squire,  for  this  was  the  next  step 

8 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

toward  knighthood.  Now  that  he  had  grown  older  and 
stronger,  more  service  was  required  of  him,  and  his  ex- 
ercises became  more  severe.  Within  the  castle  he  con- 
tinued to  serve  at  the  table ;  but  he  was  now  privileged 
to  present  the  first  or  principal  cup  of  wine.  He  still 
brought  water  for  the  hand-washing,  and  he  carved  the 
meat.  He  never  sat  at  the  same  table  with  his  lord.  In- 
deed, in  many  places  a  knight  would  not  permit  his  own 
son  to  eat  with  him  until  he,  too,  had  been  made  a 
knight.  In  Chaucer's  description  of  a  squire,  he  makes 
it  clear  that  the  young  man  of  twenty  years  was  a  brave 
young  fellow  who  had  had  considerable  experience  in 

warfare,  but 

Curteys  he  was,  lowly  and  servisable, 
And  carf  beforn  his  fader  at  the  table. 

After  the  meal  was  over,  squires  and  pages  together  cleared 
the  hall  for  dancing,  or  they  brought  tables  for  check- 
ers or  for  the  heavy  chessboards  then  in  use.  Whatever 
amusement  was  on  foot,  the  squire  was  permitted  to  share. 
Indeed,  throughout  all  the  training  of  a  boy  for  knight- 
hood, it  was  never  forgotten  that  he  must  be  taught  to 
make  himself  as  agreeable  within  the  castle  as  he  was 
expected  to  be  courageous  without  its  walls.  An  import- 
ant part  of  his  education  was  practice  in  composing  love 

9 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

songs.  He  was  expected  of  course  to  have  his  lady-love, 
for  whom  he  must  be  ready  to  endure  all  hardships  and 
meet  all  dangers. 

He  continued  the  exercises  of  his  days  as  a  page  ;  but 
he  gave  much  more  time  to  them.  He  learned  to  leap 
farther,  to  run  longer  distances,  to  climb  jagged  cliffs 
almost  as  perpendicular  as  the  walls  of  the  cities  which 
he  hoped  some  day  to  be  able  to  aid  in  capturing.  He 
learned  to  bear  hunger  and  thirst  and  heat  and  cold  and 
to  keep  himself  awake  through  long  nights  of  watching. 
His  weapons  were  now  made  larger  and  heavier.  He  was 
taught  to  wield  the  great  battle-axe,  to  endure  the  weight 
of  armor,  and  to  move  about  in  it  easily.  A  battle  in  the 
Middle  Ages  was  more  like  a  large  number  of  duels  than 
a  contest  between  bodies  of  troops,  and  an  exceedingly 
good  preparation  for  this  kind  of  warfare  was  an  exer- 
cise known  as  the  quintain.  For  this  a  post  was  set  in 
the  ground  on  top  of  which  was  a  crosspiece  that  would 
whirl  around  at  a  touch.  From  one  end  of  the  cross- 
piece  hung  a  board  and  from  the  other  a  sand-bag.  The 
squire  must  ride  up  to  this  at  full  tilt  and  strike  the 
board  with  his  lance.  But  woe  to  him  who  was  slow  or 
clumsy,  for  quick  as  a  flash  the  crosspiece  whirled  about, 
and  he  was  struck  a  substantial  blow  by  the  sand-bag. 

10 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

Often  the  figure  of  a  knight  was  used,  so  hung  that 
unless  the  young  squire  was  skillful  enough  to  strike  it 
on  the  breast  it  struck  him  —  and  the  wooden  knight 
never  missed  his  stroke. 


QUINTAIN 

Each  squire  in  turn  became  "  squire  of  the  body/'  that 
is,  he  was  the  closest  attendant  of  his  lord.  When  his 
master  went  to  the  field  of  battle,  the  helmet  was  often 
entrusted  to  a  page,  but  to  carry  the  shield  and  armor 
was  the  task  of  the  squire  of  the  body.  A  much  more 

I  I 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

difficult  part  of  his  duty  was  to  array  the  knight  in  his 
armor  with  all  its  complicated  fastenings.  Every  knight 
had  his  pennon.  If  he  had  given  long  service  and  had 
many  followers,  the  point  or  points  of  his  pennon  were 
cut  off,  leaving  a  square  banner.  He  was  then  called  a 
banneret.  Both  banneret  and  baron  were  privileged  to 
act  as  commanders  of  little  armies  of  their  own.  They 
were  under  the  king,  but  each  one  had  his  own  war-cry 
and  called  his  men  together  under  his  own  standard. 
Whether  the  squire  served  banneret  or  baron  or  knight, 
it  was  his  honorable  task  to  bear  the  banner  or  pennon. 
He  needed  to  have  his  wits  about  him,  for  if  the  knight 
dropped  his  weapon,  he  must  be  ready  to  pass  him  a  fresh 
one.  If  the  knight  was  unhorsed,  the  squire  must  catch 
his  horse  if  necessary,  and  help  him  to  mount;  and  if  the 
horse  itself  was  wounded  seriously,  the  squire  must  have 
another  one  ready  or  must  bring  forward  his  own.  If  the 
knight  took  a  prisoner,  he  was  passed  over  into  the  charge 
of  the  squire,  that  the  knight  might  be  left  free  for  fur- 
ther contests.  If  the  knight  was  getting  the  worst  of  the 
fight  or  was  attacked  by  several  at  once,  the  squire  must 
come  to  his  aid ;  if  he  was  taken  prisoner,  the  squire 
must  rescue  him  if  possible;  if  he  was  wounded,  must 
carry  him  to  a  place  of  safety ;  and  if  he  was  killed,  it 

12 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

was  the  sad  duty  of  the  squire  to  see  that  he  received  an 
honorable  burial. 

Every  year  brought  the  time  nearer  when  the  squire 
was  to  be  made  a  knight.  The  one  thing  necessary  to 
bring  this  about  was  for  the  king  or  some  other  knight 
to  give  him  the  accolade,  that  is,  a  blow  on  his  should- 


KNIGHTS     FIGHTING 


der  or  the  back  of  his  neck  as  he  knelt  to  receive  it.  This 
was  usually  followed  by  the  words,  "  In  the  name  of  God, 
of  Saint  Michael,  and  of  Saint  George,  I  dub  thee  knight. 
Be  brave,  ready,  and  loyal/'  Sometimes  all  that  was  said 
was,  "Be  a  good  knight."  When  a  number  of  squires 
were  to  be  made  knights,  as  often  happened  just  before 
or  just  after  a  battle,  the  ceremony  was  no  more  com- 

13 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

plicated  than  this.  Sometimes  on  the  very  battle-field, 
when  a  squire  had  done  some  praiseworthy  deed  of  brav- 
ery, he  was  knighted  in  this  simple  and  direct  fashion. 
When  there  was  plenty  of  time,  however,  the  process 


CONFERRING    KNIGHTHOOD    ON    THE    BATTLE-FIELD 

was  much  longer.  First,  the  hair  of  the  candidate  was 
cut.  To  give  up  one's  hair  was  looked  upon  as  a  mark 
of  the  devotion  of  one's  self  to  God.  Generally  the  cut- 
ting of  a  single  lock  was  regarded  as  sufficient,  but  some- 
times the  head  was  shaved  in  the  fashion  of  the  tonsure 

14 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

of  the  priest.  The  candidate  was  put  into  a  bath  and  then 
into  a  bed.  Every  part  of  the  ceremony  had  a  meaning, 
and  these  acts  signified,  first,  purity,  and  then  the  rest 
which  he  who  had  been  pure  would  enjoy  in  Paradise. 
He  was  now  supposed  to  be  cleansed  from  all  sins  of  his 
previous  life,  and  to  symbolize  this  he  was  arrayed  in  a 
white  shirt,  or  long  tunic.  Over  it  a  red  garment  with 
long  sleeves  and  a  hood  was  thrown  to  indicate  that  he 
was  ready  to  shed  his  blood  in  the  service  of  God,  and 
finally  a  close  black  coat  was  put  upon  him  to  remind 
him  of  the  death  which  all  must  meet.  After  twenty- 
four  hours  of  fasting,  he  spent  a  night  in  a  church,  keep- 
ing what  was  called  the  vigil  of  arms,  that  is,  kneeling 
by  his  armor,  praying  and  meditating.  When  the  sun 
rose,  he  made  his  confession  to  a  priest,  heard  mass,  and 
partook  of  the  Holy  Sacrament. 

This  was  his  final  preparation.  Later  in  the  day  he  and 
his  friends  went  to  the  church  or  the  castle  hall.  The 
young  man  gave  his  sword  to  the  priest,  and  the  priest 
laid  it  upon  the  altar,  praying  that  God  would  bless  it 
and  that  it  might  defend  the  Church  and  protect  widows 
and  orphans.  The  candidate  took  a  solemn  oath  that  it 
should  be  used  for  these  purposes.  The  priest  then  re- 
turned the  sword  to  him  and  made  a  little  address  on  the 

15 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

duties  that  lay  before  him  in  his  new  life  and  reminded 
him  of  the  happiness  that  awaited  him  who  performed 
these  duties  with  faithfulness  and  zeal. 

Now  came  the  moment  for  which  every  one  was  wait- 
ing. The  young  man  went  forward  to  the  lord  who  was 
to  make  him  a  knight  and  knelt  before  him  with  clasped 
hands.  The  lord  questioned  him  somewhat  in  this  wise: 
"  Why  do  you  wish  to  be  made  a  knight?  Is  it  with  the 
hope  of  gaining  treasure?  Is  it  that  men  may  show  you 
honor? "  On  the  young  man's  declaring  that  he  had  no 
such  wishes,  both  knights  and  ladies  united  in  arming 
him.  The  golden  spurs  came  first,  then  the  other  pieces 
of  armor,  and  last  of  all  the  sword.  The  lord  then  gave 
him  the  accolade,  sometimes  a  light  touch  with  the  sword 
on  the  shoulder  or  the  nape  of  the  neck,  and  sometimes 
a  hearty  blow  with  the  hand  or  even  the  clenched  fist. 
This  was  followed  by  the  charge,  to  be  brave,  ready,  and 
loyal.  The  older  knights  drew  their  swords  and  repeated 
the  vows  which  they  had  taken  on  entering  chivalry, 
and  the  priest  pronounced  the  blessing  of  the  Church 
upon  one  and  all.  So  it  was  that  in  the  ceremony  of 
making  a  knight,  the  Church,  the  soldier,  and  the  woman 
had  each  a  share.  The  assembly  then  passed  out  into  the 
open  air.  The  horse  of  the  newly  made  knight  stood 

16 


Page,  Squire,  and  Knight 

waiting.  He  sprang  upon  its  back — and  unless  he.  wished 
to  disgrace  his  new  honors,  he  must  not  touch  the  stir- 
rup—  and  rode  about  the  court,  prancing  and  caracoling, 
brandishing  his  glittering  sword,  and  showing  how  well 
he  knew  the  use  of  his  lance.  The  servants  and  minstrels 
of  the  castle  had  waited  patiently,  and  now  they  had 
their  share  in  the  rejoicings,  for  to  prove  his  gratitude 
for  receiving  the  noble  gift  of  knighthood  the  young 
knight  made  as  generous  a  gift  to  each  one  as  his  purse 
would  permit. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  KNIGHT'S  ARMS  AND  ARMOR 

THE  chief  weapons  used  by  knights  were  the  lance  and 
the  sword,  and  therefore  they  needed  especially  some  sort 
of  protection  against  the  thrust  of  a  lance  and  the  stroke 
of  a  sword.  Every  knight  wore  a  helmet,  for  nothing 
would  please  his  enemy  better  than  to  strike  a  mighty 
blow  that  would  cleave  his  head  from  its  crown  to  the 
breastbone.  There  were  many  sorts  of  helmets.  Some 
were  shaped  like  closely-fitting  hoods,  covering  the  back 
of  the  head,  but  leaving  the  face  unprotected.  Some 
were  cone-shaped  and  had  visors  that  could  be  lifted,  and 
others  were  much  like  broadbrimmed  hats.  Some  had  a 
piece  of  iron  called  a  nasal  which  extended  down  over 
the  forehead  and  nose ;  and  some  covered  the  whole 
head  like  a  kettle  and  had  slits  through  which  the 
knight  might  peer  out  at  his  enemy — or  through 
which  the  enemy  might  sometimes  thrust  the  point  of 
a  spear.  The  helmet  was  not  always  plain  by  any 
means,  for  it  was  often  beautifully  ornamented  with 
silver  or  gold.  It  was  heavy  enough  at  best ;  but  the 

18 


A    CREST 


The  Knight's  Arms  and  Armor 

warrior  bold  never  objected  to  increasing  its  weight  by 

adding  as  a  crest  a  little  image  of  an  eagle  or  a  lion  or  a 

dragon  to  suggest  to  his  enemy  what  a 

brave  man  he  was. 

The  warrior  must  guard  his  heart  as 

well  as  his  head,  and  he  always  wore 

some  sort  of  armor  to  protect  his  body. 

For  a  long  while  this  was  in  the  form  of  a  short  tunic  of 

shirt  called  a  hauberk.     With  it,  chausses,  or  breeches, 

were  worn.  At  the  neck  a  hood 
of  mail  was  joined  to  the  hau- 
berk, or  habergeon,  which  served 
to  protect  the  back  of  the  head. 
In  the  earlier  times  the  hauberk 
was  made  of  leather  or  cloth  and 
was  often  thickly  wadded  and 
quilted.  Indeed,  the  leather  hau- 
berks never  went  entirely  out 
of  use  so  long  as  armor  was 
worn.  Sometimes  they  were 
really  handsome,  for  the  leather 

was  stamped,  colored,  and  gilded  in  elaborate  patterns. 

They  were  cheap  and  convenient;  but  when  an  enemy 

was  galloping  up  to  a  man  and  thrusting  a  lance  at  his 


HAUBERK 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

heart  with  full  force,  even  the  thickest  leather  was  small 
protection.  It  occurred  to  some  one  with  an  inventive 
mind  that  if  rings  of  metal  were  only  sewed  upon  this 
tunic,  it  would  not  be  so  easy  for  either  lance  or  sword 
to  reach  the  heart  of  a  man.  The  rings  were  sewed  on 
in  rows,  and  before  long  larger  rings  were  sewed  over 
them.  Then  some  one  said  to  himself,  "Why  sew  the 
fings  on  leather  or  cloth  ?  Why  not  interlace  them  in  a 
network?"  and  soon  knights  were  setting  forth  to  battle 
with  coats  of  mail  made  of  interlaced  rings.  A  coat  of 
this  kind  was  far  less  clumsy  and  heavy  than  a  leather 
tunic.  Moreover,  it  could  be  rolled  up  into  so  small  a 
bundle  that  it  could  be  carried  on  the  back  of  a  saddle. 
This  was  a  fairly  good  protection  against  sword  and 
spear,  and  probably  the  knights  who  first  went  out  to 
battle  with  new  and  shining  ring  or  chain  armor  felt  that 
nothing  better  could  ever  be  invented ;  but  there  were 
two  other  weapons  whose  blow  was  only  made  more 
dangerous  by  this  armor.  These  were  the  battle-axe 
and  the  heavy  battle-hammer,  or  martel.  The  head 
of  the  hammer  sometimes  weighed  twenty  pounds,  and 
with  a  strong  man  to  wield  it  with  both  hands  it  became 
a  terrible  weapon.  The  priests  and  bishops  of  those  days 
were  often  called  upon  to  lead  their  people  in  fighting 

20 


The  Knight's  Arms  and  Armor 

as  well  as  in  praying.  The  Church  law  forbade  them  to 
"take  the  sword/'  but  it  said  nothing  about  the  ham- 
mer; therefore  they  took  the  hammer  and  went  into 
battle  with  clear  consciences.  When  either  hammer  or 
axe  struck  its  crushing  blow,  chain 
armor  was  worse  than  nothing,  for 
it  tore  the  flesh  beneath  it  into 
rough,  jagged  wounds  that  were 
hard  to  heal. 

The  next  invention  was  to  fasten 
on  plates  of  steel  at  the  most  ex- 
posed places,  and  soon  the  coudiere 
protected  the  elbow  and  the  genou- 
illiere  the  knee.  Little  by  little  the 
chain  armor  disappeared,  and  armor 
of  overlapping  scales  took  its  place. 
Every  piece  had  its  name.  The 

KNIGHT    IN    ARMOR 

chest  and  back  were  protected  by 

a  cuirass ;  the  throat  by  a  gorget,  and  thighs  by  cuisses, 
the  arms  and  shoulders  by  brassarts  and  ailettes,  and  the 
hands  by  gauntlets,  while  the  chausses  were  extended 
to  protect  the  toes.  The  chain  armor  was  much  easier 
to  put  on,  and  a  knight  could  slip  it  over  his  head 
even  after  he  saw  his  enemy  in  the  distance  galloping 

21 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

toward  him.  The  plate  armor  protected  him  from  sword 
and  spear  and  in  great  degree  from  hammer  and  battle- 
axe,  but  it  took  so  long  to  put  it  on  that  the  knight  had 
to  wear  it  not  only  in  time  of  battle,  but  whenever  there 
was  the  least  danger  of  being  surprised  by  an  enemy. 
When  two  knights  fought,  the  one  who  could  unhorse 
the  other  was  usually  the  winner,  for  while  his  adversary 
rolled  helplessly  on  the  ground,  he  could  slip  a  thin, 
slender  dagger  in  between  the  plates  of  his  armor  and 
kill  him.  To  do  such  a  deed,  however,  would  have  been 
a  shame  and  disgrace  to  any  true  knight  unless  he  first 
asked,  "Will  you  yield,  rescue  or  no  rescue?*'  If  the 
vanquished  man  replied,  "  I  yield/'  the  dagger  of  mercy, 
as  it  was  called,  was  not  used,  but  he  was  led  away  as  a 
prisoner.  If  a  knight  fell  into  the  power  of  a  man  who 
had  not  taken  even  the  first  steps  toward  knighthood,  he 
was  indeed  in  difficulties.  Naturally,  he  wished  to  save 
his  life ;  but  to  surrender  to  an  adversary  of  low  degree 
would  be  a  humiliation  hard  for  any  valiant  knight  to 
endure.  Some  one  discovered  an  amusing  way  of  escap- 
ing from  this  dilemma.  He  simply  made  his  captor  a 
knight  and  then  surrendered  to  him;  thus  saving  both 
his  life  and  his  pride. 

The  knight  wore  golden  spurs.    These  were  his  espe- 

22 


The  Knight's  Arms  and  Armor 

cial  badge  of  honor,  and  they  were  forbidden  to  all  of 
lesser  rank.  He  carried  a  shield  large  enough  to  protect 
his  body  and  to  serve  as  a  litter  on  which,  if  he  was 
wounded,  he  could  be  carried  from  the  field.  Across 
his  shoulder  he  often  wore  a  silken  scarf  called  a  baldric, 
embroidered  by  the  lady  for  whose  glory  his  deeds  of 
prowess  were  done.  In  Joseph  Rodman  Drake's  poem 
on  The  American  Flag,  he  said  that  its  white  came  from 
"  the  milky  baldric  of  the  skies/'  meaning  the  Milky 
Way.  Another  way  by  which  a  knight  could  show  loyalty 
to  one's  lady-love  was  to  fasten  her  glove  or  scarf  to  his 
helmet.  Still  another  way  was  to  fasten  one  of  her 
sleeves  to  his  shoulder.  Sleeves  were  so  long  in  those 
times  that  they  sometimes  touched  the  ground,  and 
must  have  hampered  the  knight  badly.  The  fashion  of 
wearing  them  as  pennons  was  much  more  reasonable. 

As  a  protection  from  the  heat  of  the  sun,  which  beat 
down  upon  his  armor  of  steel,  the  knight  wore  also  a 
sort  of  sleeveless  tunic  called  a  tabard,  and  also  jupon, 
gipon,  and  surcoat.  At  first  this  was  made  of  linen  or  a 
coarse  cloth  known  as  fustian,  but  as  people  became 
more  luxurious,  silk  or  fur  or  cloth  of  gold  was  used. 
It  must  soon  have  become  badly  stained  by  the  armor 
beneath  it.  The  poet  Chaucer  never  failed  to  notice 


(V. 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

whether  things  were  fresh  and  clean  and  dainty,  and  he 
wrote  of  a  knight  who  had  just  returned  from  war- 
fare, — 

Of  fustian  he  wered  a  gipoun 

Al  bismotered  [stained]  with  his  habergeoun. 

After  armor  was  so  made  that  it  hid  the  face  of  the 
knight,  the  custom  arose  of  engraving  some  device  upon 
the  shield  or  breastplate  by  which  he  might 
be  recognized.  This  was  also  embroidered 
upon  his  surcoat  and  upon  the  trappings  of  his 
horse.  These  are  the  "arms'*  or  "coats  of 
arms"  or  "armorial  bearings"  that  have  been 
handed  down  in  many  families,  together  with 
the  figures  on  the  helmets  known  as  crests. 
The  oldest  arms  were  simple  arrangements  of 
straight  lines,  but  soon  the  devices  became 
more  complex.  Circles,  trefoils,  arrows,  and  swords  were 
used.  The  figures  of  animals  appeared,  such  as  cranes, 
mullets,  lions,  and  horses ;  and  also  fabulous  beasts,  such 
as  dragons  and  unicorns.  Frequently  a  device  was  chosen 
which  had  connection  with  some  event  of  its  bearer's 
life.  If  a  man  had  a  noted  adventure  with  a  wolf,  he 
was  likely  to  choose  the  figure  of  a  wolf  for  his  coat  of 
arms.  The  terms  in  which  arms  are  described  are  taken 

24 


The  Knight's  Arms  and  Armor 

from  the  French ;  for  instance,  in  figure  2,  if  the  shield 
is  silver  and  the  bar,  or  "rafter,"  is  red,  the  proper 
description  would  be :  "  Argent,  a  chevron  gules." 

The  favorite  weapons  of  the  knight  were  the  spear 
and  the  sword,  as  has  been  said.  The  spear  was  made  of 
ash  and  had  a  head  of  iron.  Just  below  the  head  the 
ensign,  called  the  gonfanon,  or  pennon,  was  fastened. 
This  was  sometimes  made  of  linen,  but  often  of  the 
richest  silk.  The  sword  which  hung  from  the  knight's 
belt  was  his  darling.  He  spoke  of  it  almost  as  affection- 
ately as  if  it  had  been  a  brother  in  arms.  "  My  own 
good  sword,"  he  called  it.  He  even  gave  it  a  name. 
Charlemagne's  sword  was  Joyosa  ;  Roland's  was  Durin- 
dana ;  Arthur's  was  Excalibur.  The  Cid's  favorite  sword, 
Tizona,  was  buried  with  him.  The  sword  was  more 
than  a  weapon,  for  blade  and  hilt  formed  the  sacred 
sign  of  the  cross,  and  many  a  good  knight  and  true  has 
kissed  it  fervently  and  murmured  his  last  prayer  as  he 
lay  dying  on  the  field  of  battle.  Not  only  the  sword, 
but  also  many  other  parts  of  the  knight's  equipment  had 
their  significance.  The  straightness  of  the  spear  sym- 
bolized truth,  and  its  iron  head,  strength.  The  helmet 
suggested  modesty;  the  spurs,  diligence.  The  shield 
reminded  him  that  as  by  its  use  he  saved  his  own  body, 

25 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

so  ought  he  to  use  that  body  to  protect  his  lord  when 
in  danger. 

The  knight's  good  steed  that  carried  him  into  the 
battle  was  an  important  part  of  his  equipment.  The 
powerful  horses  of  Spain  were  always  liked  by  knights, 

but  the  Arabian 
coursers  were  even 
greater  favorites. 
The  horses  of  the 
Arabs  had  been 
petted  and  loved 
and  treated  almost 
as  members  of  their 
masters*  families 
for  so  many  genera- 
tions that  they  were 
fearless  servants  and 
devoted  friends.  If  the  knight  was  thrown  from  his 
seat,  the  horse  had  no  thought  of  running  away,  but 
stood  quietly  beside  him,  waiting  for  him  to  mount. 
The  horse  as  well  as  his  rider  was  protected  by  armor, 
so  that  head,  chest,  and  flanks  were  safe  from  spear 
thrusts.  He  was  arrayed  in  trappings  as  handsome  as  his 
master  could  afford.  The  housings,  or  saddlecloths,  were 

26 


KNIGHT    ON    HORSEBACK. 


The  Knight's  Arms  and  Armor 

often  of  rich  material  and  decorated  with  embroidery. 
On  his  head,  he,  too,  wore  a  crest,  and  around  his  neck 
a  collar  of  little  bells.  Chaucer  says  of  a  monk  who 
liked  to  go  hunting, 

And  whan  he  rood  men  myghte  his  brydel  here 
Gynglen  in  a  whistlyng  wynd  as  clere, 
And  eek  as  loude  as  doth  the  chapel  belle. 

It  was  on  the  bridle,  however,  that  the  knight  lavished 
his  pennies.  This  was  ornamented  with  gold  and  silver 
and  embroidery,  and  even  with  precious  stones,  that 
flashed  and  sparkled  as  the  steed  bore  his  rider  proudly 
into  the  contest.  After  the  combat  of  the  day  was  over, 
the  tent  pitched,  and  the  supper  prepared,  the  faithful 
horse  was  not  forgotten,  and  one  of  the  early  pictures 
shows  him  eating  comfortably  from  a  crib  in  his  mas- 
ter's tent  close  to  the  knight's  own  table. 


CHAPTER  III 

JOUSTS  AND   TOURNAMENTS 

AFTER  the  young  squire  had  become  a  knight,  he  some- 
times remained  in  the  castle  of  his  lord  for  a  time  or  he 
went  back  to  his  father's  home.  In  either  case  life  must 
have  seemed  a  little  tame  after  all  the  excitement  of 
entering  knighthood.  It  is  no  wonder  that  he  was  eager 
to  go  out  into  the  world  to  try  his  new  armor  and  do 
honor  to  his  lady  by  his  deeds  of  valor. 

There  were  several  ways  in  which  a  knight  might 
prove  his  worthiness  to  enter  chivalry.  The  simplest  was 
to  mount  his  horse  and  ride  out  in  quest  of  adventures. 
His  bright  shining  armor  was  protected  from  rain  and 
he  himself  from  heat  by  his  unsoiled  surcoat.  Behind 
him  rode  his  squire,  carrying  his  master's  shield  and  hel- 
met and  an  armful  of  lances.  The  squire  was  not  always 
a  rash,  hot-headed  young  fellow  by  any  means.  A  man 
could  hardly  maintain  knighthood  properly  without  a 
generous  income,  and  many  a  squire  who  was  fully  quali- 
fied to  enter  the  ranks  of  the  knights  never  went  beyond 

28 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

the  second  grade  in  chivalry.  It  was  well  for  the  ven- 
turesome knight  errant,  or  wandering  knight,  if  his 
squire  was  some  sturdy  warrior  of  middle  age  who  would 
sympathize  with  his  master's  thirst  for  gallant  achieve- 
ments, but  would  hold  him  back  from  foolish  reckless- 
ness. The  country  was  wild  and  rough.  Deeds  of  vio- 
lence were  common,  and  the  young  knight  might  be 
fortunate  enough  to  find  an  adventure  ready  made.  He 
might  discover  that  some  maiden  fair  had  been  torn  from 
her  friends ;  and  he  could  perhaps  rescue  her  and  restore 
her  to  them.  He  might  stop  at  a  friendly  castle  to  spend 
the  night  and  find  that  its  lord  would  be  glad  of  his  aid 
to  defend  it  against  some  expected  attack  of  its  enemies. 
Even  if  all  was  peaceful,  there  might  be  a  chance  of  a 
contest,  or  joust.  When  he  appeared  at  the  gate,  the 
porter  might  tell  him  that  it  was  the  "  custom  of  the 
castle"  for  every  knight  who  wished  a  lodging  to  joust 
with  one  or  two  of  the  knightly  inmates  or  with  the 
lord  of  the  castle.  If  the  knight  errant  vanquished  his 
challenger,  he  should  have  the  best  lodging  that  the  castle 
afforded;  but  if  he  was  overcome,  he  might  go  his 
way,  or  so  the  porter  declared.  Visitors  were  so  welcome, 
however,  in  the  rather  lonely  castles  that  I  doubt  whether 
any  promising  stranger  was  ever  allowed  to  go  forth  to 

29 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

make  his  lodgment  in  the  forest.  Sometimes  the  stranger 
himself  was  the  challenger ;  and  when  he  came  to  a  castle 
gate,  he  would  bid  the  porter  say  to  the  lord  of  the  castle 
that  a  knight  errant  would  gladly  joust  with  him  or  some 
other  brave  knight.  The  stranger  was  welcomed  and  led 
within  the  walls,  and  the  word  was  carried  through  the 
castle  that  a  joust  was  to  take  place.  Then  ladies  and 
knights  and  squires,  the  great  folk  and  the  small  folk  of 
the  place,  all  betook  themselves  to  the  tilting-ground. 
This  was  a  green,  grassy,  level  spot  within  the  court- 
yard, surrounded  by  turfy  banks  for  the  lookers-on.  The 
knights  took  their  places,  one  at  each  end  of  the  open 
space.  They  bent  low  upon  their  horses  and  couched 
their  lances.  Then  they  put  spurs  to  their  steeds  and 
dashed  together  with  all  their  might,  each  trying  to  strike 
the  shield  of  the  other  with  such  force  that  he  would  fall 
to  the  ground.  Sometimes  both  spears  were  shivered. 
Then  the  men  would  take  fresh  weapons  and  try  a  sec- 
ond bout. 

Another  way  by  which  an  ardent  knight  errant  often 
made  sure  of  a  contest  was  by  taking  his  stand  at  a  bridge 
or  where  two  roads  crossed  and  challenging  every  passing 
knight  to  joust  with  him.  If  darkness  came  and  no  ad- 
versary had  been  found,  he  would  lay  down  his  shield, 

3° 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

take  his  helmet  for  a  pillow,  say  his  prayers,  and  go  to 
sleep,  hoping  for  better  luck  in  the  morning.  Sometimes 
the  knight  errant,  instead  of  simply  challenging  the  other 
to  a  contest,  would  declare  that  his  lady  was  the  fairest 
woman  in  the  world,  and  that  he  was  ready  to  fight  any 
knight  in  the  land  to  maintain  her  preeminence  in  beauty. 
The  opposing  knight  was  of  course  equally  ready  to  de- 
clare that  his  lady-love  was  far  more  beautiful.  The  ques- 
tion must  be  decided  by  a  combat.  This  usually  meant 
three  courses.  The  spears  were  carefully  "bated,"  that  is, 
blunted.  This  was  often  done  by  heading  them  with  a 
"coronal/1  a  sort  of  crown  ending  in  from  two  to  six 
blunt  points.  These  would  take  hold  on  shield  or  helmet, 
but  would  do  no  injury  to  the  wearer.  Such  a  contest 
was  called  zjoute  a  p/aisance,  or  joust  of  peace.  Unless 
something  happened  to  arouse  the  wrath  of  the  com- 
batants, there  was  rarely  any  serious  injury  done  to 
either  of  them ;  but  if  two  knights  fought  in  anger, 
using  deadly  weapons,  their  combat  was  known  as  zjoute 
a  outrance,  that  is,  a  joust  to  the  extreme.  After  the 
contest  was  done,  the  victor  spoke  in  somewhat  this 
wise  to  the  vanquished :  "  I  bid  you  make  your  way 
to  my  lady,  through  whose  favor  I  have  won  this  victory, 
and  submit  yourself  wholly  to  her  grace  and  mercy." 

32 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

As   one  knight  after  another  presented  himself  to  the 
lady,  she  must  certainly  have  been  fully  convinced  that 


A    TOURNAMENT 


her  champion  was  true  to  her.  Moreover,  those  were 
times  of  danger  and  violence,  and  every  evidence  of  his 
courage  and  valor  was  one  more  proof  of  his  ability  to 
guard  her  and  protect  her. 

33 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

These  chance  jousts  at  crossroads  and  castles  were 
good  practice  in  the  use  of  arms,  but  the  grand  oppor- 
tunity for  a  knight  not  only  to  show  excellence  in 
knighthood  but  to  manifest  ability  under  the  very  eyes 
of  his  lady-love  was  found  in  the  tournament,  or  en- 
counter of  many  knights  in  a  sort  of  mimic  battle. 
These  tournaments  were  given  by  wealthy  nobles  or  by 
the  king  himself,  and  elaborate  preparations  were  made 
for  them  long  beforehand.  The  invitations  were  car- 
ried by  the  heralds  of  the  giver  of  the  tournament.  A 
castle  guard  would  report  that  a  herald  with  trumpets 
and  escort  was  making  his  way  to  the  castle  gate.  The 
gate  was  straightway  thrown  open,  and  with  a  great  clat- 
tering of  hoofs  the  little  cavalcade  rode  over  the  draw- 
bridge and  through  the  low,  dark  gateway  into  the 
courtyard.  The  trumpeter  blew  a  blast  to  call  the  at- 
tention of  the  folk  of  the  castle.  He  might  have  saved 
his  breath,  however,  for  long  before  this,  lords  and 
ladies,  knights,  squires,  pages,  and  servants,  even  down 
to  the  scullions  in  the  kitchen,  had  hurried  into  the 
courtyard  or  had  found  some  other  place  where  they 
could  hear  what  the  herald  had  to  say.  Then  came 
the  proclamation  of  the  tournament,  addressed  to  all 
who  would  show  their  right  to  knighthood  and  mani- 

34 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

fest  their  respect  for  ladies.  The  place,  the  hour,  the 
prizes,  the  armor  and  weapons  required,  and  some- 
times even  the  number  of  squires  and  attendants  that 


PROCLAIMING    A    TOURNAMENT 


each  knight  must  bring  were  proclaimed.  The  herald 
blew  his  trumpet  and  gave  his  announcement  not  only 
at  castles,  but  wherever  markets  were  held.  Sometimes, 
if  the  tournament  was  to  be  of  unusual  splendor,  invita- 

35 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

tions  were  sent  not  only  throughout  the  land  of  the 
giver,  but  even  into  neighboring  countries. 

Traveling  was  slow  work,  therefore  the  invitations 
must  have  been  given  long  before  the  time  set  for  the 
tournament,  but  I  fancy  that  there  was  not  a  young 
knight  in  the  land  who  did  not,  on  the  very  day  of  the 
herald's  visit,  begin  to  polish  his  armor  and  take  a  look 
at  his  spears  to  make  sure  that  their  ashen  shafts  showed 
no  sign  of  flaw.  As  for  the  ladies,  they,  too,  had  their 
share  of  preparations  to  make,  for  they  must  appear  in 
their  most  sumptuous  attire  to  grace  the  occasion.  Each 
one  hoped  that  her  own  special  knight  would  cover 
himself  with  glory,  and  then  she  would  fain  look  her 
fairest  that  all  might  have  respect  for  the  choice  that 
he  had  made. 

The  journey  to  a  tournament  might  be  long,  but  it 
was  safer  than  other  journeys,  for  even  rulers  of  hostile 
countries  would  have  thought  it  unworthy  of  them  to 
interfere  with  those  who  were  on  their  way  to  a  trial 
of  arms.  As  for  the  king  of  whatever  land  it  might 
be  in  which  the  tournament  was  to  take  place,  he  was  al- 
ways delighted  with  any  occasion  that  gave  his  knights 
practice.  From  far  and  near  little  companies  of  knights 
with  the  ladies  of  the  noble  households  and  the  squires 

36 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

and  pages  and  servants  in  attendance  rode  merrily  to- 
ward the  place  of  meeting.  Once  there,  they  were  wel- 
comed by  their  host,  and  lodgings  were  arranged  for 
them.  Some  were  to  sleep  within  the  castle  itself,  some 
in  a  neighboring  village,  some  in  tents  belonging  to  the 
lord  of  the  castle,  and  some  had  brought  their  own  tents. 
Wherever  a  knight  was  lodged,  he  planted  his  spear  and 
banner,  and  over  the  entrance  he  set  up  the  design 
which  was  on  his  coat  of  arms.  These  designs  were 
known  to  all  the  other  knights,  and  they  were  carefully 
scrutinized.  In  the  earlier  days  of  chivalry,  only  knights 
of  noble  descent  were  allowed  to  join  in  a  tournament, 
but  in  later  times  not  only  men  of  humble  birth  who 
had  been  knighted  for  their  bravery,  but  even  squires 
were  admitted  to  the  privileges  of  the  lists.  Occasion- 
ally, too,  a  man  who  had  some  good  reason  for  not  re- 
vealing his  name  was  allowed  to  join  the  tourney.  Hum- 
ble birth,  then,  might  be  pardoned  and  concealment  of 
one's  name  might  sometimes  be  overlooked,  but  there 
was  one  thing  that  was  never  forgiven,  and  that  was  un- 
worthiness.  If  a  knight  had  been  false  to  any  woman 
or  had  broken  his  word  or  had  shown  cowardice 
or  ingratitude,  he  might  as  well  have  remained  at 
home,  for  he  would  be  forbidden  to  take  any  part  in 

37 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

the  tournament  and  his  banner  would  be  torn  down  in 
disgrace. 

The  courtyard  of  the  castle  must  have  seemed  like  a 
village  in  a  time  of  holiday.  There  were  old  friends 
who  saw  each  other  but  seldom  ;  there  were  knights 
whose  rumored  bravery  every  one  wanted  to  see  tested  ; 
there  were  gallant  youths  and  maidens  fair.  There  was 
talk  of  other  tournaments  and  the  feats  which  had  made 
them  remembered,  of  hawking  and  hunting,  of  new 
castles  that  had  been  built  and  old  ones  that  had  been 
valiantly  defended,  of  weapons  and  warfare  and  horses  and 
heroes.  There  were  little  trial  jousts  between  knights. 
There  were  feasting  and  music  and  dancing  and  singing 
and  exchanging  of  gifts  and  plighting  of  troth. 

On  the  night  before  the  tournament  everybody  went  to 
bed  early;  but  when  the  morning  had  come,  the  court- 
yard was  no  longer  a  village  on  a  holiday,  it  was  rather 
a  village  hard  at  work.  No  one  was  idle,  for  the  handles 
of  the  shields  must  be  tried,  the  armor  must  have  its  final 
polish ;  straps,  rivets,  and  buckles  must  be  examined  for 
the  last  time.  Horses  must  be  fed  and  rubbed  down. 
Even  the  musicians  were  testing  their  clarions  and  ket- 
tle-drums and  pipes  and  trumpets  as  if  the  success  of 
the  whole  day  depended  upon  their  being  in  full  tone. 

38 


HERALD    SHOWING    ARMORIAL    BEARINGS    OF    CONTESTANTS 


39 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Everybody  was  discussing  those  who  were  to  contest* 
One  was  a  favorite  because  he  had  distinguished  himself 
elsewhere,  another  because  of  his  great  strength  or  his 
determined  manner  or  his  skill  in  managing  his  horse. 
Of  course  every  lady  had  her  favorite  knight;  but  the 
ladies  were  bound  to  be  fair,  for  they  were  umpires  if 
any  dispute  arose,  and  the  prizes  were  presented  accord- 
ing to  their  decision.  Early  in  the  morping  the  con- 
testants had  been  to  mass,  and  now,  when  all  was  ready, 
every  one  turned  toward  the  lists.  These  had  been  pre- 
pared long  before.  A  level  oblong  area  had  been  fenced 
off  with  a  double  row  of  wooden  railings.  Between  the 
two  was  a  space  saved  for  those  who  were  to  assist  injured 
knights  or  who  held  some  position  of  responsibility. 
Outside  of  this  space  wooden  galleries,  often  very  hand- 
some, had  been  built  for  the  spectators.  These  galleries 
were  gorgeous  with  tapestry  and  banners  and  with  the 
bright-colored  dresses  and  sparkling  jewels  of  the  ladies. 
The  lord  of  the  tournament  had  already  announced  what 
arms  it  would  be  allowable  to  use.  As  a  general  thing, 
it  was  forbidden  to  bring  into  the  lists  any  weapon  with 
a  sharp  point.  The  broadsword,  but  not  the  pointed 
sword,  was  sometimes  permitted.  The  points  of  the 
lances  were  removed  or  protected  by  coronals  or  covered 

4o 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

with  pieces  of  wood  called  rockets.  The  heralds  now 
proclaimed  the  rules  of  the  contest.  He  who  broke 
most  lances  was  to  have  the  first  prize ;  but  they  must 
be  broken  in  strict  accordance  with  the  laws  of  the 
tournament ;  for  instance,  to  break  a  spear  by  striking  a 
man  out  of  his  saddle  counted  three  points,  but  to  break 
one  by  striking  the  saddle  itself  made  a  loss  of  one  point. 
To  meet  coronal  with  coronal  twice  was  regarded  as 
worthy  of  a  prize,  but  it  counted  less  than  to  unhorse  a 
man  with  a  spear  thrust.  The  prize  was  lost  to  any  one 
who  struck  a  horse,  or  struck  a  man  when  his  back  was 
turned  or  when  he  was  unarmed.  To  break  a  lance  across 
the  breast  of  an  opponent  was  looked  upon  as  a  shame  be- 
cause it  showed  poor  riding,  and  to  ride  well  was  the 
most  essential  qualification  of  a  knight.  Shakespeare 
laughs  at  the  "  puny  tilter,  that  spurs  his  horse  but  on 
one  side/'  If  for  a  moment  of  rest  or  for  any  other  reason 
a  man  took  off  his  helmet,  no  one  might  touch  him  un- 
til it  was  replaced  ;  but  to  prevent  any  abuse  of  the  priv- 
ilege, he  who  removed  his  helmet  twice  for  any  other 
reason  than  because  his  horse  had  failed  him  lost  all 
chance  of  a  prize. 

After  the  constable  had  examined  the  arms  of  the 
knights,  he  looked  carefully  at  their  saddle  fastenings  to 

42 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

make  sure  that  no  one  proposed  to  stick  to  his  horse  by 
leather  straps  rather  than  by  good  horsemanship.  When 
all  was  ready,  the  heralds  cried,  "  Come  forth,  knights, 
come  forth !  "  and  a  glittering  cavalcade  made  its  way  into 
the  lists.  The  horses  in  their  superb  trappings,  their  bri- 
dles blazing  with  jewels,  pranced  and  caracoled.  Some- 
times every  knight  was  led  by  a  chain  of  gold  or  silver, 
the  other  end  of  which  was  held  in  the  white  hand  of 
some  lady  fair.  The  armor  gleamed  and  flashed  in  the  sun. 
Armorial  bearings  shone  forth  on  the  brightly  polished 
shields.  From  jeweled  helmets  and  from  lances  fluttered 
gloves  or  ribbons  belonging  to  the  ladies  who  were  watch- 
ing so  eagerly,  and  from  many  a  knightly  shoulder  hung 
the  richly  ornamented  sleeve  of  some  comely  maiden. 

The  knights  were  in  two  groups  separated  by  a  rope, 
one  party  at  either  end  of  the  lists.  Behind  them  rode 
their  squires,  often  as  many  as  three  to  a  knight.  "  Let 
go,"  .cried  the  ladies.  The  trumpets  sounded.  "  Do  your 
duty,  valiant  knights !  "  the  heralds  shouted.  The  rope 
was  snatched  aside.  The  knights  bent  low,  put  spurs  to 
their  horses,  and  with  lances  in  rest  dashed  forward  to  meet 
their  opponents,  each  one  calling  the  name  of  his  lady- 
love. "  The  eyes  of  the  beautiful  behold  you  !  Onward, 
onward !  "  cried  the  spectators.  The  minstrels  played,  the 

43 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

trumpets  blared,  the  plain  was  shaken  with  the  trampling 
of  the  horses  ;  the  din  of  arms  and  the  cracking  of  stout 
ashen  spears  filled  the  air.  Men  were  thrown  from  their 
steeds,  blood  mingled  with  the  dust —  and  the  first  course 
had  been  run. 

Sometimes  there  were  several  such  encounters ;  and 
when  the  end  had  come,  the  heralds  cried,  "  Fold  your 
banners  ! "  and  soon  the  lists  were  deserted.  After  the 

• 

knights  had  bathed  and  dressed,  they  met  the  ladies  in 
the  great  hall  of  the  castle  and  banqueted  and  made  merry. 
The  scene  for  which  all  waited  was  yet  to  come;  and 
when  the  feasting  had  been  brought  to  an  end,  the  fair 
lady  who  had  been  chosen  "  Queen  of  Love  and  Beauty  " 
took  her  seat  upon  a  dais.  The  heralds  led  up  to  her  one 
brave  knight  after  another,  rehearsing  in  a  loud  voice  the 
claims  of  each  to  a  prize ;  and  as  they  knelt  before  her, 
she  presented  to  each  one  the  reward  which  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  ladies  was  due  to  his  valor.  This  was  some- 
times a  silver  helmet  or  one  richly  ornamented  with  gold, 
a  crown  of  gold,  a  golden  clasp,  or  perhaps  a  diamond, 
ruby,  or  sapphire,  set  in  a  heavy  golden  ring.  With  every 
gift  the  "  Queen  "  made  a  little  speech  which  always 
closed  with  the  hope  that  the  recipient  might  be  happy 
with  his  lady-love.  "  The  victory  was  owing  to  the  favor 

44 


CONFERRING    PRIZES 


45 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

of  my  lady  which  I  wore  in  my  helmet/'  was  the  proper 
reply  for  the  knight  to  make.  After  the  prizes  had  all  been 
awarded,  gifts  were  made  to  the  heralds.  Then  followed 
a  ball ;  and  here  not  the  man  of  noblest  birth,  but  the 
man  who  had  shown  most  valor  in  the  lists  was  most 
highly  honored.  With  music  and  dancing  the  long,  bright, 
joyous  day  came  to  its  close. 

Frequently  a  single  day  was  not  enough  to  satisfy  the 
love  of  knightly  prowess,  and  on  the  second  day  the  lists 
were  given  over  to  the  squires.  They  wore  the  armor  of 
their  respective  knights  and  strove  their  best  to  do  it 
honor.  Prizes  were  presented  to  them  by  young  maidens. 
Sometimes  there  was  even  a  third  day  of  tilting,  and  in 
that  case  both  knights  and  squires  took  part. 

Such  was  the  general  course  of  tournaments,  but  they 
differed  at  different  times  and  in  different  countries  and 
according  to  the  wishes  and  rulings  of  the  givers.  Some- 
times if  the  leaders  of  the  two  sides  chanced  to  be  ene- 
mies or  rivals,  the  tournament  became  a  little  war.  Deadly 
weapons  were  then  smuggled  into  the  lists,  and  the  ground 
was  drenched  with  blood.  The  intention  of  the  tourna- 
ment, however,  was  that  the  utmost  courtesy  should  be 
shown  and  that  an  opportunity  should  be  given  to  mani- 
fest skill  in  arms  and  cultivate  it  rather  than  to  wound  or 

46 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

maim  or  destroy  life.  At  best  it  was  a  rough  and  some- 
times a  fatal  sport,  but  it  did  teach  men  that  even 
in  the  midst  of  the  most  eager  struggles  for  victory  it 
was  possible  for  them  to  recognize  laws  and  exercise  self- 
restraint. 

An  appeal  to  arms  was  often  made  to  settle  questions 
of  justice.  If  two  men  claimed  the  same  piece  of  ground, 
for  instance,  they  might  decide  the  ownership  by  a  con- 
test. Even  if  a  man  was  accused  of  crime,  he  was  some- 
times allowed  to  prove  his  innocence  —  if  he  could  —  by 
showing  himself  or  his  chosen  champion  the  victor  in  a 
duel.  Under  Charlemagne  a  test  of  endurance  was  legally 
used  when  two  men  differed.  They  were  made  to  take  their 
stand  before  a  cross  with  their  arms  stretched  out.  The 
one  whose  arms  first  dropped  lost  his  suit. 

In  charges  of  serious  crime,  however,  the  people  of  the 
Middle  Ages  often  used  methods  that  might  well  appall 
the  most  innocent.  One  was  to  bind  the  accused,  hand 
and  foot,  and  let  him  down  by  a  rope  into  the  water.  It 
was  believed  that  if  he  was  guilty,  the  water  would  refuse 
to  receive  him  and  he  would  float;  but  that  if  he  was  in- 
nocent, he  would  sink.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  officers 
never  forgot  to  rescue  the  man  who  sank.  Far  worse  than 
this  was  the  ordeal  by  boiling  water.  This  was  a  matter 

47 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

of  much  ceremony.  It  took  place  in  the  church.  First, 
a  cross,  a  censer,  and  relics  of  the  saints  were  borne  into 
the  building.  The  priest  followed,  carrying  a  copy  of  the 
Gospels.  He  chanted  a  litany  and  the  seven  penitential 
Psalms.  He  prayed  that  the  truth  might  be  revealed,  and 
that  if  the  accused  had  had  recourse  to  herbs  or  magic,  it 
might  not  save  him.  Holy  water  was  sprinkled  about, 
particularly  upon  the  kettle,  in  order  that  any  illusions  of 
the  devil  might  be  driven  away.  Then  with  many  pray- 
ers the  hand  of  the  accused  was  thoroughly  washed.  He 
drank  a  cup  of  holy  water  and  plunged  his  hand  into  the 
boiling  kettle.  The  hand  was  sealed  up,  and  at  the  end 
of  three  days  it  was  formally  examined.  If  it  showed  no 
sign  of  a  burn,  the  man  was  declared  innocent ;  but  if 
there  was  a  blister  "  half  as  large  as  a  walnut/*  this  was 
regarded  as  proof  of  his  guilt. 

Another  ordeal  was  that  of  the  hot  iron.  This  some- 
times consisted  of  carrying  redhot  iron  seven  or  nine 
paces;  sometimes  of  walking  upon  burning  plough- 
shares. In  the  eleventh  century  Queen  Emma  of  Eng- 
land was  accused  of  crime  and  was  brought  into  the 
church  for  the  test.  The  pavement  was  carefully  swept 
and  nine  redhot  ploughshares  were  laid  upon  it.  The 
queen's  shoes  and  stockings  were  taken  off  and  her  cloak 

48 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

thrown  aside.  Two  bishops,  one  on  either  hand,  led  her 
toward  the  iron.  Throughout  the  church  there  was  sob- 
bing and  weeping.  "Help  her,  help  her!  Saint  Swithin, 
help  her!"  the  people  cried.  The  bishops,  too,  were  in 
tears ;  but  they  bade  her  not  to  fear,  for  God  would  not 
suffer  the  innocent  to  come  to  harm.  Then  she  stepped 
upon  the  ploughshares,  one  after  another.  The  old  ac- 
count says  that  she  felt  no  pain  and  that  her  feet  showed 
no  injury. 

The  theory  of  these  trials  was  that  God  would  always 
save  the  guiltless ;  but  many  explanations  have  been  at- 
tempted of  the  reason  why  hot  water  and  hot  iron  did 
not  burn.  If  the  water,  or  the  melted  lead,  which  was 
sometimes  used,  was  hot  enough,  feats  similar  to  these 
have  been  performed.  In  regard  to  the  test  of  the  red- 
hot  iron,  it  has  been  suggested  that  during  the  many 
prayers  that  seem  to  have  been  said  after  the  irons  were 
laid  in  place,  ploughshares  on  a  stone  floor  would  cool 
very  rapidly.  Again,  we  are  reminded  that  all  these  trials 
were  in  the  hands  of  the  priests,  that  the  people  were 
expecting  miracles,  and  that  if  the  priests  wished  to  save 
a  man,  they  could  easily  arrange  some  deception  or  could 
harden  his  skin  by  some  ointment  —  only  no  one  can 
guess  what  the  ointment  could  have  been. 

49 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

People  connected  with  the  Church  were  not  obliged 
to  undergo  such  experiences ;  for,  no  matter  of  what 
crime  they  were  accused,  they  could  always  demand  a 
trial  before  the  Church  courts.  This  was  called  "  benefit 
of  clergy."  In  some  of  the  Church  courts  of  the  thir- 
teenth century,  if  a  man  accused  of  crime  swore  that  he 
was  innocent  and  could  bring  in  twelve  of  his  friends 
who  would  lay  their  hands  on  some  holy  relics  and 
swear  that  they  believed  him,  he  was  allowed  to  go  free. 
To  escape  in  this  way  was  not  quite  so  easy  as  it  looks; 
for  the  general  belief  was  that  a  perjurer  would  prob- 
ably be  made  a  dwarf  or  would  be  unable  to  remove  his 
hands  or  would  even  be  struck  dead.  Naturally,  then, 
the  compurgators ',  or  fellow-swearers,  were  somewhat  ner- 
vous, and  if  they  made  the  least  mistake  in  repeating 
the  required  form  of  words,  their  oaths  were  of  no  avail. 
Not  only  priests,  but  all  their  assistants,  even  to  the  door- 
keeper, were  allowed  benefit  of  clergy.  In  some  places 
if  a  man  could  read  a  single  line,  he  was  allowed  the 
same  privilege.  It  is  even  said  that  the  same  verse  of  the 
Psalms  was  always  used  as  a  test.  Besides  the  compara- 
tive comfort  of  the  trial,  the  punishments  of  the  Church 
courts  were  exceedingly  light  when  contrasted  with  the 
brutal  penalties  of  the  kings'  courts.  But  for  the  man 

50 


Jousts  and  Tournaments 

accused  of  serious  crime  who  could  not  make  out  that 
he  had  any  connection  with  the  Church  or  any  "book 
learning/'  there  was  gerierally  little  hope  of  escaping 
some  one  of  the  ordeals  which  have  just  been  de- 
scribed. 


CHAPTER   IV 

How  TO   CAPTURE   A   CASTLE 

IN  the  times  when  no  man  was  safe  unless  he  could 
protect  himself  with  his  dwn  strong  arm  or  the  arms  of 
his  followers,  the  castle  of  a  nobleman  had  to  be  well 
fortified.  If  it  was  not,  the  chances  were  that  it  would 
soon  change  owners.  The  very  word  "  castle "  means  a 
fortified  residence. 

At  first  the  means  of  protection  were  of  the  simplest 
kind.  A  wide  earthen  wall  thrown  up  around  a  group 
of  huts  was  regarded  as  a  valuable  defense.  Stronger 
walls  were  made  by  using  trunks  of  trees  and  rough 
stone  work  for  the  foundation  and  filling  in  the  spaces 
with  earth.  Stakes  were  driven  down  and  bound  to- 
gether to  form  a  stout  palisade,  or  fence.  After  a  time 
wooden  forts  were  reared  of  heavy  logs  and  beams. 
Stone  finally  took  the  place  of  wood ;  and  it  was  of 
stone  that  most  of  the  castles  of  the  days  of  knighthood 
were  built.  These  were  far  removed  from  the  simple 
fortifications  of  earlier  times.  They  had  massive  stone 
walls  and  towers,  moats,  or  wide,  deep  ditches  filled  with 

52 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

water,  inner  courts  and  outer  courts,  chapels,  cellars, 
dungeons,  together  with  chambers  and  staircases  cut  ouc 
of  the  thickness  of  the  walls,  drawbridges,  and  under- 
ground passages  —  all  of  which  seem  somewhat  romantic 


A    CASTLE    OF    THE    MIDDLE    AGES 


in  stories,  but  which  were  exceedingly  necessary  and 
matter-of-fact  means  of  protection  when  they  were  built. 
For  the  site  of  a  castle  a  noble  sometimes  chose  an 
island  in  a  lake,  like  the  famous  Castle  of  Chillon  in  Lake 
Geneva,  or  a  low,  swampy  place  that  an  enemy  would 

53 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

find  difficult  to  reach ;  but  he  generally  preferred  the 
bank  of  a  river  or  some  high,  rocky  location.  One  of 
the  most  famous  castles  was  the  Chateau  Gaillard,  or 
the  "  Saucy  Castle,"  which  was  built  in  Normandy  by 
Richard  the  Lion-hearted  in  the  days  when  kings  of 
England  still  held  possessions  in  France.  It  stood  on  a 
narrow  promontory  three  hundred  feet  above  the  river 
Seine  with  a  deep  valley  on  either  hand.  The  north  end 
of  the  promontory  was  so  steep  and  rocky  that  there  was 
little  danger  of  an  attack  on  that  side.  The  south  end, 
however,  sloped,  and  up  this  gently  rising  ground  an 
enemy  might  easily  advance.  It  was  wise,  then,  to  make 
the  fortifications  exceedingly  strong  at  the  south.  A 
glance  at  the  plan  shows  how  this  was  done.  C  represents 
an  outwork  with  five  strong  towers  whose  walls  were 
eleven  feet  thick.  These  were  connected  by  "curtains/* 
that  is,  heavy  stone  walls  from  eight  to  twelve  feet  thick 
and  thirty  feet  or  more  in  height.  All  around  this  mas- 
sive outwork  was  a  ditch,  E,  some  thirty  feet  wide  and 
more  than  forty  feet  deep.  The  gate  was  at  D ;  but  before 
any  one  could  reach  it,  he  must  find  some  way  of  cross- 
ing the  moat.  Friends  might  cross  by  means  of  a  wooden 
drawbridge;  but  at  the  first  glimpse  of  an  enemy,  chains 
and  weights  were  set  in  motion,  and  the  bridge  was 

54 


BIRD'S-EYE  VIEW  OF  CHATEAU  GAILLARD 

55 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

pulled  up  flat  against  the  wall.  The  gate  was  protected 
by  a  portcullis,  that  is,  a  sort  of  screen  made  of  heavy 
beams,  each  one  pointed  with  iron.  When  no  enemy  was 
at  hand,  this  hung  quietly  above  the  entrance,  but  at  the 
first  sign  of  danger,  there  was  a  great  rattling  of  chains, 
and  in  a  moment  the  portcullis  had  dropped  in  its  grooves. 
Between  this  outwork,  or  "outer  court,"  C,  and  the 
"middle  court,"  B,  there  must  have  been  some  sort  of 
passage  way,  and  probably  walls  to  protect  it.  The 
middle  court  had  also  a  moat.  It  had  towers  and  cur- 
tains, and  within  it  was  a  chapel,  F,  and  a  well,  G.  Out 
of  this  middle  court  an  area  was  taken  about  as  large  as 
the  outer  court  to  form  the  "  inner  court,"  A.  The  wall 
which  separated  the  two  courts  was  so  strong  that  it 
does  not  seem  as  if  it  could  ever  have  been  overthrown, 
for  it  was  thirty  feet  high  and  eight  feet  thick.  This 
was  only  the  beginning  of  its  strength,  however,  for  on 
the  side  next  the  middle  court  rounding  buttresses  had 
been  added.  On  top  of  the  wall  there  were  probably 
battlements,  that  is,  a  low,  narrow  wall  running  along 
the  outer  edge  of  the  main  wall  and  cut  down  at  points 
a  few  feet  apart.  The  defenders  of  the  castle  could  shoot 
their  arrows  through  the  open  spaces  and  then  step  be- 
hind the  parapet  for  shelter.  The  wall  protected  the 

56 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

inner  court,  but  the  wall  itself  was  protected,  for  the 
solid  cliff  on  which  it  stood  was  cut  down  perpendicu- 
larly, or  "scarped"  for  twenty  feet,  so  that,  even  if  an 
enemy  had  suc- 
ceeded in  get- 
ting possession 
of  the  middle 
court,  he  would 
still  have  the 
moat,  H,  to 
cross ;  and  on 
the  other  side  of 
the  moat  there 
would  tower 
up  above  him 
twenty  feet  of 


perpendicular 
cliff  and  thirty 
feet  of  solid  wall. 
The  entrance 
to  the  inner 

court  was  at  I.  It  was  approached  by  a  causeway  cut  out 
of  the  solid  rock ;  but  it  did  not  afford  a  very  agreeable 
entrance  to  an  unwelcome  visitor,  for  there  was  an  outer 

57 


PLAN    OF    CHATEAU    GAILLARD 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

portcullis  and  an  inner  portcullis ;  and  even  if  he  suc- 
ceeded in  passing  these  and  also  the  gateway  studded  with 
iron,  he  would  find  himself  at  the  foot  of  a  steep  stairway 
cut  in  the  rock,  and  the  greeting  that  he  would  receive 
from  the  inmates  of  the  castle  would  not  be  to  his  liking. 
The  inner  court,  then,  stood  some  twenty  feet  above 
the  middle  court.  It  was  protected  by  a  wall  thirty  feet 
high  with  a  perpendicular  base  twenty  feet  high  and  by 
a  moat.  Within  this  court  was  a  deep  well,  for  in  case  of 
a  siege  the  defenders  of  this  court  might  be  cut  off  from 
the  well  at  G.  In  this  inher  court  was  the  strongest  for- 
tification of  all,  the  castle  proper,  the  great  tower  known 
as  the  keep,  K.  Its  walls  were  eleven  feet  thick.  The  cir- 
cular space  within  was  twenty-six  feet  in  diameter.  In  the 
basement  was  one  window,  but  no  door.  The  first  floor 
had  two  windows,  but  they  were  small,  for  safety  was 
thought  of  before  air  and  sunshine.  Here,  however,  was 
a  door,  small  and  well  protected.  It  was  many  feet  from 
the  ground  and  was  probably  reached  by  a  ladder  or  mov- 
able stairway.  The  keep  was  of  a  singular  shape.  Evi- 
dently King  Richard  thought  that  there  was  little  danger 
of  an  attack  being  made  from  the  west,  for  on  that  side 
was  a  sheer  descent  of  cliff;  but  the  spur  of  the  keep  that 
projected  into  the  first  court  he  made  in  the  shape  of  a 

58 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

right  angle  and  built  it  of  solid  masonry.  The  keep  was 
the  final  place  of  refuge,  and  even  after  every  other  part 
of  the  fortifications  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  an  enemy, 
this  could  generally  withstand  any  attack  that  could  be 
made  by  the  engines  of  those 
times.  Nevertheless,  in  order  to 
make  this  keep  even  stronger, 
the  lower  part  of  the  wall 
"battered,"  that  is,  it  sloped 
outward  at  the  base,  while  above 
the  base  rose  what  are  known 
as  machicolations.  These  were 
long,  heavy  brackets  supporting 
a  sort  of  gallery  with  a  parapet. 
In  the  floor  of  the  gallery  be- 
tween the  machicolations  were 
openings  through  which  arrows 
could  be  shot  downward 


KEEP  OF  CHATEAU  GAILLARD 


or 


heavy  stones  could  be  dropped,  or  boiling  water  or  oil 
or  melted  lead  could  be  poured  straight  down  upon  the 
heads  of  the  besiegers.  It  is  thought  that  from  the  top 
of  this  keep  another  and  smaller  tower  rose,  and  from 
that  yet  another,  both  probably  built  of  wood. 

Joining  the  keep  on  the  north  was  a  building,  K,  which 

59 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

is  thought  to  have  been  the  lodging  of  the  castellan,  or 
governor  of  the  castle.  From  this  building  stairs  descended 
to  what  was  called  the  postern  gate,  L.  This  was  a  little 
narrow  door  with  heavy  bars.  It  was  from  this  gate  that 
spies  or  messengers  were  sent  out  in  time  of  siege.  To 
reach  it  from  within,  steps  were  cut  in  the  rock  for  about 
thirty  feet.  To  reach  it  from  without  must  have  been  al- 
most impossible,  for  it  opened  upon  the  perpendicular 
face  of  the  scarp.  To  let  out  a  messenger  or  admit  a  friend, 
a  ladder  or  a  movable  bridge  was  let  down.  Every  castle 
had  its  postern,  so  that  if  the  inmates  were  besieged,  they 
might  have  some  possible  way  of  communication,  dan- 
gerous as  it  was,  with  the  outer  world. 

When  one  looks  at  the  ruins  of  the  castles  of  the  Mid- 
dle Ages,  one  can  hardly  see  how  an  enemy  ever  had  the 
courage  to  attempt  to  capture  one  of  them.  Indeed,  if 
a  foe  could  spare  the  time  and  the  men,  it  was  usually 
easier  and  cheaper  to  keep  close  watch  of  it  until  the  in- 
mates were  starved  into  a  surrender.  No  matter  how  full 
of  food  the  storehouses  might  be,  it  would  give  out  some 
time ;  and  if  no  assistance  came  from  outside,  the  castle 
would  have  to  yield.  If  an  attempt  to  subdue  a  castle  was 
to  be  made,  however,  there  were  three  common  methods 
of  attack.  One  was  to  force  a  way  in  through  a  gate  if 

60 


THE    ATTACK    FROM    A    TOWER 


61 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

possible ;  a  second,  to  get  to  the  top  of  the  protecting 
wall  and  overpower  the  defenders ;  and  a  third,  to  under- 
mine the  walls.  If  the  wall  was  neither  too  high  nor  too 
well  guarded,  the  enemy  could  sometimes  set  up  scaling 
ladders  with  their  iron  hooks  and  make  a  furious  attack 
upon  the  defenders  at  the  top,  which  they  resisted  as 
furiously  with  crowbars,  and  bills  and  boar  spears.  The 
best  way  to  get  to  the  top  of  a  high  and  well-defended 
wall  was  to  use  the  movable  tower.  This  was  a  wooden 
shed  several  stories  high  and  set  upon  rollers.  When  this 
was  to  be  used,  there  was  a  busy  running  to  and  fro  to 
collect  turf  and  trunks  of  trees  to  throw  into  the  moat. 
As  soon  as  enough  of  these  materials  had  been  collected 
to  choke  up  the  moat  and  make  a  roadway  across  it,  the 
great  tower  was  rolled  cumbrously  across  the  moat  and 
up  to  the  wall.  It  was  filled  with  men,  and  the  moment 
that  it  was  near  enough  to  the  rampart,  a  drawbridge 
was  dropped  from  its  upper  story  to  the  top  of  the  wall. 
Over  this  bridge  rushed  the  besiegers,  and  a  terrible  con- 
test was  carried  on.  Of  course  the  defenders  did  not  sit 
quietly  while  the  tower  was  being  moved  up.  They  threw 
upon  it  what  was  called  Greek  fire  in  the  hope  of  setting 
it  ablaze.  Greek  fire  is  thought  to  have  been  made  of 
asphalt,  nitre,  and  sulphur.  Wherever  it  was  thrown,  there 

62 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

it  stuck.  It  did  little  damage  to  these  towers,  however, 
for  their  makers  had  covered  them  carefully  with  plates 
of  metal  or  with  raw  hides.  Storms  of  arrows  were  shot 
by  both  sides ;  but  the  men  in  the  tower  were  so  well 
'  protected  by  its  walls  that  little  harm  was  done  them. 
When  the  tower  was  in  place  and  the  bridge  down,  the 
besiegers  had  one  great  advantage,  for  they  could  march 
out  a  whole  column  from  the  tower,  while  the  defenders 
had  seldom  room  on  the  wall  for  more  than  a  thin  line. 
A  third  way  of  attacking  a  castle  was  by  attempting 
to  undermine  the  walls.  If  these  rested  upon  so  rocky  a 
foundation  as  that  of  the  "  Saucy  Castle/'  the  matter  was 
far  more  difficult;  but  if  the  ground  was  soft,  a  mine,  or 
passage  underground,  could  be  begun  at  some  distance 
away  and  dug  under  the  very  base  of  the  wall.  Beams 
were  put/ in  to  support  the  wall,  and  straw,  twigs,  and 
dry  woojd  were  heaped  up  under  them.  The  miners  set 
this  o^  fire  and  crept  out  of  the  hole  as  fast  as  possible. 
As  s,oon  as  the  beams  were  burned  through,  the  wall 
above  them  generally  fell,  and  through  the  breach  the 
bestfegers  rushed  in  with  good  hope  of  winning  a  victory, 
dning  did  not  always  go  on  so  smoothly,  however,  for 
xt  often  happened  that  some  one  within  the  castle  had 
l;ars  so  quick  that  he  heard  noises  underground  and  sus- 

63 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

pected  what  was  being  done.  Then  a  counter-mine  was 
dug  from  within  outward  in  the  hope  of  intercepting  the 
other  mine.  The  two  passages  sometimes  met,  and  the 
fighting  between  the  men  underground  was  most  furious 
and  savage. 

If  the  castle  had  a  firm  rocky  foundation,  the  only 
possible  way  to  undermine  the  wall  was  by  the  use  of 
the  pickaxe.  This  was  not  easy  when  the  defenders  be- 
hind the  parapets  were  shooting  arrows  and  great  stones 
and  dropping  boiling  water  or  oil  or  melted  lead  down 
through  the  openings  between  the  machicolations ;  and 
if  it  was  to  succeed,  there  must  be  some  sort  of  protec- 
tion for  the  men  with  the  pickaxes.  Tiiis  protection  was 
called  the  "cat,"  or  in  some  places  the  "rat."  It  was 
shaped  like  a  long,  narrow  house  with  sidt  walls.  The 
roof  sloped  sharply,  so  that  the  heavy  stones  «nd  beams 
that  would  be  thrown  upon  it  from  the  top  of  the  wall 
might  roll  off  harmlessly.  To  protect  it  from  fire,  it  was 
often  covered  with  iron,  and  over  this  raw  hides  or  wet 
earth  was  laid.  Then,  too,  men  within  the  structure  were 
always  on  guard  with  long  forks  or  poles  whose  tnds 
were  covered  with  pieces  of  wet  blanket  to  thrust  off 
firebrands.  This  was  built  in  some  place  out  of  range  of 
the  arrows  and  stones  and  then  moved  up  close  to  the 

64 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

wall.  Under  its  shelter  men  could  work  in  safety. 
They  had  a  valuable  tool  in  what  was  known  as  a 
"  bosson."  This  was  a  battering  ram,  a  long,  heavy  beam 
with  an  iron  head.  It  was  on  wheels,  and  when  the  be- 
siegers rolled  it  up  and  dashed  it  against  the  wall,  it 
struck  with  terrific  force.  The  defenders  on  the  top  of  the 
wall  tried  to  break  its  head  off  by  dropping  heavy  stones 
and  timbers  upon  it ;  but  the  besiegers  leaned  strong  poles 
against  the  wall  in  such  a  way  that  these  slid  off  harm- 
lessly. The  attempt  to  set  it  afire  was  usually  hopeless, 
for  it  was  kept  thoroughly  wet  and  was  covered  with 
mud.  Sometimes,  however,  a  narrow  tunnel  was  dug  as 
quietly  as  possible  from  within  the  fort  out  under  the 
cat,  and  a  barrel  or  two  of  Greek  fire  slipped  beneath  it. 
Then  the  defenders  on  the  wall  watched  eagerly  to  see 
the  flames  burst  out.  They  might  well  count  the  mo- 
ments, for  at  any  instant  the  stone  work  under  their  feet 
might  crumble. 

All  this  time  both  besiegers  and  defenders  were  con- 
stantly firing  arrows  at  each  other  by  hand  and  also  by 
machines  called  "  balistas  "  which  were  like  immense  cross- 
bows and  shot  great  arrows  and  javelins  with  tremendous 
force.  To  protect  themselves  from  these  the  besiegers 
used  bucklers  and  also  a  sort  of  screen  called  a  "  mantelet " 

65 


THE    BOSSON 

66 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

which  they  moved  before  them  on  wheels.  In  the  screen 
was  a  narrow  slit  through  which  they  could  send  back  a 
return  fire.  In  the  fourteenth  century  cannon  were  used 
to  some  extent,  but  they  could  fire  only  three  or  four 
shots  an  hour  and  had  an  unpleasant  custom  of  explod- 
ing. Outside  a  fort,  they  were  of  some  little  value;  but 
when  the  besieged  ventured  to  mount  them  on  the  walls, 
the  chief  damage  done  was  to  their  owners.  Their  recoil 
loosened  the  stones  of  the  wall  and  frequently  the  can- 
non ingloriously  rolled  off.  The  most  important  ma- 
chines were  those  for  throwing  stones,  and  these  as  well 
as  the  balistas  were  used  by  both  besiegers  and  besieged. 
They  were  exceedingly  powerful.  Some  of  them  could 
hurl  for  six  hundred  feet  a  stone  weighing  three  hundred 
pounds.  If  they  could  only  have  worked  rapidly,  they 
would  have  done  an  immense  amount  of  damage  ;  but  it 
took  several  days  to  set  one  up,  and  the  best  of  them  could 
throw  only  a  few  stones  in  an  hour.  Moreover,  it  was 
impossible  to  take  accurate  aim.  One  of  these  machines 
was  called  a  trebuchet.  It  consisted  of  two  uprights  con- 
nected at  the  top  by  a  bar.  Resting  on  the  bar  was  a 
ponderous  beam.  The  shorter  arm  of  this  beam  was 
heavily  weighted ;  by  using  much  force,  the  longer  arm 
was  slowly  pulled  down  to  the  ground,  and  in  a  sort  of 

67 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

sling  fastened  to  it  a  great  stone  was  placed  or  perhaps 
a  barrel  of  Greek  fire.  Then  it  was  suddenly  let  go.  The 
short  arm  dropped,  and  the  stone  was  hurled  with  tre- 
mendous power.  There  were  other  machines,  the  man- 
gonel, catapult,  espringal,  etc.,  but  they  were  not  very 
dissimilar,  and  most  of  them  resembled  in  principle 
either  the  balista  or  the  trebuchet. 

Many  romantic  descriptions  of  taking  castles  have 
been  written,  but  the  real  thing  had  little  of  romance 
about  it.  In  a  real  siege  the  air  was  full  of  heavy  stones, 
javelins,  arrows,  and  darts,  some  bearing  masses  of  blaz- 
ing pitch  and  tow  with  occasionally  perhaps  an  arrow 
carrying  a  message  from  a  traitor  either  within  or  with- 
out the  walls  to  the  opposing  party,  of  barrels  of  the 
terrible  Greek  fire,  of  smoke  from  burning  roofs  and 
galleries  and  of  crumbling  mortar  from  falling  ramparts. 
There  was  a  wild  and  horrid  confusion  of  terrible  sounds, 
the  din  of  armor,  the  shouting  of  battle  cries,  the  groan- 
ing of  dying  men  and  the  crash  of  falling  stones  and 
timbers  and  crumbling  walls.  Men  shrieked  in  agony  as 
they  were  burned  by  the  boiling  oil  or  melted  pitch  or 
blinded  by  the  unslacked  lime  poured  down  upon  them 
from  the  walls.  The  moat  ran  red  with  blood.  Such 
was  a  real  assault  upon  a  castle  in  the  Middle  Ages. 

68 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

The  story  of  the  fall  of  the  Chateau  Gaillard  is  full  of 
interest.  It  was  a  pet  child  of  King  Richard,  and  in  1 1 98 
he  called  it  "  my  fair  daughter  of  one  year  old."  King 
Philip  of  France  declared,  "  I  would  take  it  if  its  walls 
were  of  iron."  Richard  retorted,  "And  I  could  hold  it 
if  they  were  of  butter."  Perhaps  he  could  have  done  so, 
but  one  year  later  he  was  dead,  and  his  brother  John,  who 
followed  him,  was  a  man  of  quite  different  mettle.  Philip 
captured  one  after  another  of  the  Norman  castles  held 
by  the  English  king,  and  at  last  he  laid  siege  to  Chateau 
Gaillard,  the  strongest  of  them  all.  This  wa»  early  in 
the  autumn  of  1203.  He  captured  the  neighboring  vil- 
lages and  then,  having  cut  off  all  supplies,  settled  down 
quietly  before  the  Castle  to  wait  till  its  inmates  should 
be  hungry  enough  to  surrender.  "  They  are  young  birds 
who  will  have  to  fly  when  spring  comes,"  he  said  con- 
tentedly. 

A  few  months  later,  however,  Philip  became  tired  of 
watching.  He  succeeded  in  undermining  the  wall  of  the 
outer  court  and  captured  it.  Among  his  followers  was  a 
poor  man  by  the  name  of  Ralph  who  was  nicknamed 
Bogis,  or  the  Snub-nose.  Whatever  may  have  been  the 
shape  of  his  nose,  he  had  keen  eyes.  He  noticed  a  little 
window,  M,  and  began  to  wonder  if  he  could  not  climb  in 

69 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  open  the  way  for  the  others.  He  and  a  few  trusty 
comrades  crept  softly  around  the  court  until  they  stood 
under  this  window.  Ralph  stood  upon  the  shoulders  of 
one  of  his  companions  and  looked  in.  No  one  was  on 
guard  at  that  place,  and  there  were  no  protecting  bars. 
He  scrambled  in,  and  found  himself  in  either  the  chapel 
or  a  storehouse  connected  with  it.  The  defenders  dis- 
covered that  their  enemies  were  in  the  building  and 
foolishly  set  fire  to  it.  The  flames  spread  and  the  garrison 
escaped  to  the  inner  court.  Then  Ralph  let  down  the 
drawbridge  and  the  besiegers  poured  in.  So  it  was  that 
by  the  keenness  and  daring  of  one  man  this  middle  court 
was  taken.  Such  a  deed  as  that  was  not  left  unrewarded, 
and  to  Ralph  was  given  a  "knight's  fee/'  that  is,  suf- 
ficient land  to  maintain  properly  a  knight  and  his  fol- 
lowers. 

The  inner  court  alone  remained  in  the  hands  of  the 
defenders.  Philip's  men  moved  up  a  cat  over  the  cause- 
way at  I,  and  in  its  shelter  a  mine  was  dug  under  the 
walls.  A  machine  for  throwing  stones  followed  the  cat. 
A  breach  was  made  in  the  heavy  masonry  and  the  be- 
siegers rushed  in.  The  defenders  were  overpowered,  and 
after  a  siege  of  six  months  the  "Saucy  Castle "  fell. 

The  Middle  Ages  were  a  time  of  almost  constant  war- 

70 


THE    CAT 


71 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

fare.  There  were  quarrels  between  kings,  between  kings 
and  their  barons,  and  among  the  barons  themselves ; 
and  all  these  quarrels  implied  fighting.  The  poor  suf- 
fered severely,  and  the  Church  came  to  their  rescue. 
The  French  bishops  tried  their  best  to  bring  about  what 
was  called  the  Peace  of  God.  High  and  low  were  bidden 
to  take  an  oath  to  refrain  from  making  war.  This  served 
as  some  little  protection  for  churches,  priests,  and  labor- 
.ers  ;  but,  powerful  as  the  Church  was,  it  could  not  oblige 
the  unruly  barons  to  take  the  oath  or  keep  it  if  it  had 
been  taken.  Then  the  Church  very  wisely  lessened  her 
demands  and  called  upon  one  and  all  to  set  apart  certain 
portions  of  the  year  to  be  free  from  bloodshed.  These 
were  from  Wednesday  evening  to  Monday  morning  in 
every  week,  about  twenty  feast  days  of  saints,  and  the 
seasons  of  Advent,  Christmas,  Lent,  and  Easter.  The 
bishops  and  the  rulers  of  France  and  to  some  degree  of 
Germany,  Italy,  Spain,  and  England  supported  this  de- 
cree, and  as  far  as  possible  those  who  broke  the  rule  were 
punished.  The  archbishop  of  Cologne  made  a  rule  that 
if  this  law  was  violated  by  any  noble,  his  heirs  might 
seize  his  property.  A  boy  under  twelve  who  fought  was 
to  be  whipped ;  if  over  twelve,  he  was  to  lose  one  hand. 
This  rule  of  peace  was  called  the  Truce  of  God,  and 

72 


How  to  Capture  a  Castle 

often  as  it  was  broken,  it  nevertheless  did  much  to  quiet 
the   turbulent  lands  and 
protect  the  poor  and  help- 
less. 

Another  way  in  which 
the  Church  tried  to  aid  the 
oppressed  was  by  establish- 
ing "sanctuaries,"  or  holy 
places  wherein  it  was  for- 
bidden to  shed  blood.  In 
those  stormy  times,  if  a 
man  was  supposed  to  have 
wronged  another,  that 
other  pursued  him,  sword 
in  hand.  But  if  he  took 
refuge  in  a  church,  he  was  safe ;  for  the  clergy  would 

keep  him  until  some  terms  had 
been  made  between  the  two. 
This  was  called  the  right  of  sanc- 
tuary. It  was  an  excellent  thing 
so  long  as  there  was  little  real 
authority  in  the  land ;  but  after 
it  had  become  established  that  an 
accused  man  would  be  brought  to 

73 


SANCTUARY    DOOR 


KNOCKER 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

trial,  then  the  right  often  became  an  occasion  of  wrong. 
If  a  man  who  had  fled  to  a  sanctuary  would  confess,  he 
was  allowed  to  "abjure  the  realm,"  that  is,  to  swear  to 
depart  from  the  land  and  never  return,  a  punishment 
which  was  a  little  hard  on  the  neighboring  countries. 
If  he  refused  to  confess,  the  law  was  helpless ;  for  the 
clergy  would  brook  no  interference  with  their  right  of 
giving  shelter  and  protection.  The  result  was  that  a  man 
who  carefully  planned  a  murder  and  was  shrewd  enough 
to  commit  it  within  easy  reach  of  a  church  could  escape  ; 
while  one  who  committed  a  crime  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment  had  far  less  chance  to  avoid  the  penalty.  Never- 
theless, the  right  of  sanctuary  was  not  entirely  abolished 
in  England  until  the  eighteenth  century. 


CHAPTER   V 

DAILY   LIFE   IN  A  CASTLE 

THE  Chateau  Gaillard  was  built  primarily  for  a  fortifica- 
tion ;  but  in  general  a  castle  was  meant  for  a  dwelling- 
place  as  well  as  a  fortress,  and  its  keep  was  the  home  of 
the  master  and  his  family.  Their  life  was  not  always  so 
narrow  and  cramped  as  one  might  fancy.  Some  castles, 
to  be  sure,  consisted  of  little  more  than  a  single  strong 
tower  and  a  moat ;  but  in  others  the  outer  court  was  large 
enough  to  contain  not  only  a  garden,  a  poultry  yard,  and 
a  watermill,  but  also  a  lake  or  fishpond  for  a  time  of 
siege,  an  orchard,  and  even  cultivated  fields.  This  outer 
court  was  sometimes  almost  like  a  village,  for  there  was 
often  a  forge,  a  bakery,  a  carpenter's  shop,  a  falconry, 
and  a  stable,  besides  houses  and  a  church.  In  the  inner 
court  there  was  frequently  a  chapel  also ;  but  this  church 
more  than  once  served  a  double  purpose.  It  was  sure 
to  suffer  if  the  castle  was  stormed  ;  and  then  a  messenger 
was  let  down  from  the  postern  gate  to  make  his  way  to 
friends  and  report  that  a  sacrilegious  enemy  was  attack- 
ing the  Church  of  God.  If  they  would  then  win  the 

75 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

favor  of  the  Church  authorities,  they  must  hasten  to  the 
rescue. 

The  centre  of  the  daily  life  of  the  castle  was  the  large 
room  known  as  the  hall.  This  varied  greatly  at  different 
times  and  in  different  places.  In  the  earlier  days,  the  hall 
was  only  a  bare  room  with  some  flat  stones  in  the  centre. 
On  these  meat  was  cooked,  and  the  smoke  found  its  way 
out  through  a  hole  in  the  roof  as  best  it  could.  As  time 
passed  and  towers  were  built  of  several  stories,  fireplaces 
with  flues  were  made.  The  floor  was  tiled  and  strewn 
with  rushes.  The  walls  were  hung  with  banners,  tapestry, 
and  standards  bright  with  armorial  bearings.  Here  and 
there  were  shields  and  armor  or  a  cluster  of  lances.  Long 
oaken  tables  with  wooden  benches  stood  ready  for  use,  or 
else  before  each  meal  trestles  were  brought  in,  and  boards 
were  laid  upon  them,  for  in  those  days  "  the  festive  board  " 
was  a  literal  board.  The  table  of  the  master  of  the  castle 
stood  at  one  end  of  the  hall.  This  place  was  called  the 
dais.  At  the  opposite  end  of  the  room  was  a  wooden 
gallery  for  musicians,  built  halfway  up  the  wall. 

When  bedtime  came,  coarse  mattresses  were  laid  on 
the  floor ;  for  here  the  people  of  the  household  and 
their  guests  were  to  pass  the  night.  The  bed  of  the  noble 
and  his  wife  stood  at  the  farther  end  of  the  hall,  separated 

76 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

from  the  rest  of  the  room  by  curtains ;  but  later,  when 
other  stories  were  added,  a  room  for  them  and  also  other 
bedrooms  were  built,  some  on  the  upper  floors  and  some 
in  the  thickness  of  the  walls.  In  the  simpler  castles  the 


A    BED-CHAMBER 


furnishings  of  these  bedrooms  were  few  and  plain,  hardly 
more  than  one  or  more  beds,  a  bench  or  two,  and  a 
wooden  chest ;  but  in  the  dwellings  of  the  wealthy  there 
was  considerable  display.  The  posts  of  the  beds  were 
sometimes  gilded,  inlaid  with  ivory,  or  ornamented  with 
precious  stones  ;  and  the  bed  coverings  were  of  silk  or  fur 

77 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

with  a  golden  fringe.  There  was  also  a  wardrobe  made 
gorgeous  with  bright  colors.  The  chests  were  handsomely 
carved,  and  for  jewels  there  were  smaller  chests  covered 
with  leather.  Frequently  there  was  in  one  corner  a  richly 
ornamented  shrine  enclosing  a  relic  of  some  saint.  It  is 
said  that  in  Italy  the  beds  were  often  put  high  up  on 
trestles  to  escape  the  rats  and  mice. 

There  was  a  certain  rude  magnificence  about  the  place, 
but  there  was  not  what  the  people  of  to-day  would  call 
comfort.  For  instance,  those  heavy  stone  walls  must  have 
been  cold,  but  in  England,  even  so  late  as  the  fifteenth 
century,  a  fire  in  one's  bedroom  was  regarded  as  a  fool- 
ish indulgence  ;  and  the  rooms  were  certainly  not  so  light 
as  we  wish  our  rooms  to  be.  It  was  not  safe  to  make  the 
windows  too  large,  and  even  a  window  of  generous  size 
would  not  let  in  much  sunshine  if  cut  into  a  wall  ten  or 
fifteen  feet  in  thickness.  The  rooms  were  often  made 
more  cheerful,  however,  by  decorations  of  red  and  yellow 
and  blue,  or  by  paintings  of  flowers  and  leaves,  conven- 
tionally treated  and  decidedly  crude,  but  bright  and 
cheery. 

In  those  wardrobes  and  richly  carved  chests  in  the  bed- 
rooms there  was  no  lack  of  expensive  clothes.  In  the 
fourteenth  century  England  tried  her  best  to  keep  her 

78 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

people  from  extravagance  in  dress  and  to  oblige  them  to 

wear  goods  of  English  weaving.   Parliament  decreed  that 

no  one  but  the  king,  queen,  and  their  children  should  be 

allowed    to   wear   imported   cloth, 

and  that  no  one  should  wear  foreign 

furs  or  silks  unless  he  had  a  yearly 

rent  of  ;£ioo.     In  the   fourteenth 

century,  £100  would  buy  as  much 

as  several  times  that  amount  to-day, 

so  that  a  man  had  to  be  very  well 

to  do  before  the  law  would  permit 

him  and  his  family  to  dress  as  they 

chose. 

The  fashions  changed  as  ex- 
tremely, if  not  quite  so  rapidly,  as 
to-day.  Toward  the  end  of  this 
century,  English  ladies  wore  tight- 
fitting  dresses  with  long,  full  skirts. 
The  sleeves  were  tight,  extending 
down  to  the  knuckles,  and  with  sixty  or  seventy  buttons 
on  each  arm.  A  few  years  later,  buttons  were  no  longer 
seen  on  the  sleeves,  and  the  sleeves  themselves  came  only 
to  the  wrist.  They  grew  larger  and  looser,  so  loose  that 
finally  a  second  pair,  made  to  fit  closely,  were  worn  under 

79 


COSTUME    OF    TIME    OF 
CHARLES    III 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

them.  Tightly  fitting  jackets  were  introduced  and  were 
worn  with  full  skirts  of  some  other  color.  The  only  rule 
in  regard  to  wearing  colors  was  apparently  to  have  plenty 
of  them.  A  blue  petticoat,  displayed  by  lifting  a  purple 
skirt  adorned  with  a  broad  yellow  band  and  worn  with  an 
ermine-trimmed  jacket,  was  evidently  regarded  as  being 
in  most  excellent  taste  ;  and  apparently  a  combination  of 
long,  loose  robe  of  blue,  yellow  girdle,  red  cloak,  and  red 
shoes  was  felt  to  be  above  criticism.  At  several  periods  dur- 
ing the  Middle  Ages  it  was  in  the  height  of  the  mode  for 
a  lady  of  rank  to  wear  a  dress  presenting  the  coat  of  arms 
of  her  husband's  family  and  her  own ;  but  it  must  have  been 
a  wee  bit  startling  to  see  a  noble  dame  appear  in  a  dress 
white  on  one  side  with  some  conventional  figures  in  black, 
and  yellow  on  the  other  side  with  a  gorgeous  red  lion  ram- 
pant for  ornament.  This  costume  was  completed  by  a 
tight  blue  jacket  trimmed  with  ermine,  a  close  red  cap, 
and  a  crown. 

But  of  all  the  remarkable  fashions,  those  pertaining 
to  the  headdress  were  the  most  astounding.  In  the  thir- 
teenth century  and  again  in  later  times,  married  women 
wore  the  wimple,  that  is,  a  covering  of  linen  or  silk  ar- 
ranged in  folds  over  the  chin,  neck,  and  the  sides  of  the 
face;  but  this  gradually  disappeared  in  favor  of  even 

so 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

more  surprising  modes.  At  one  time  the  hair  was  put 
smoothly  into  a  net,  often  made  of  thread  of  gold ;  then 
it  was  so  puffed  out  at  the  sides  that  a  fashionable  lady  had 
the  appearance  of  wearing  horns.  These  grew  higher  and 
higher,  but  at  length  a 
steeple-shaped  cap  took 
their  place.  This  was 
followed  by  one  made 
of  wire  and  various  sorts 
of  thin  material  put  to- 
gether in  such  a  way 
that  the  cap  stood  out  on 
either  side  of  the  head 
like  the  wings  of  an 
enormous  butterfly.  An- 
other style  of  headdress 
was  made  like  a  giant 
cornucopia,  and  was 
worn  slanting  up  and 
back.  From  this  hung  a  sort  of  drapery  that  floated  over 
the  shoulders;  and  from  its  highest  point  a  long  scarf 
streamed  down  the  lady's  back  to  the  floor.  One  sort  of 
headdress  was  shaped  like  a  harp,  one  like  a  heart,  one 
like  a  tower  with  battlements,  from  the  top  of  which  a 

8l 


COSTUME    OF    THE     I5TH    CENTURY 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

long  white  veil  floated.  One  was  like  a  large  crescent 
with  a  generous  amount  of  drapery,  and  one  looked  ex- 
actly as  if  two  large  napkins  had  been  shaken  out  and 
hung  by  their  centres  over  long  sticks  which  in  some 
marvelous  way  were  made  to  stand  firm  in  my  lady's 
hair. 

The  heads  of  the  men  were  free  from  such  wild  freaks 
of  fashion,  but  they,  too,  delighted  in  bright  colors.  A  long 
loose  gown  of  brilliant  red,  its  full  sleeves  lined  with  er- 
mine and  half  concealing  another  pair  which  were  blue 
and  tight,  the  trimming  of  the  whole  of  the  most  daz- 
zling yellow,  was  thought  to  be  a  quiet  but  appropriate 
costume  for  a  king.  This  garb  was  completed  by  a  sort 
of  fez  worn  on  the  head,  red  and  with  red  drapery  hang- 
ing around  it  well  banded  with  yellow.  Small  attention 
was  paid  to  cleanliness.  The  English  thought  the  French 
exceedingly  extravagant  because  they  changed  their  ruf- 
fles once  a  week  and  put  on  clean  shirts  once  a  fort- 
night. 

For  men  as  well  as  for  women  strict  laws  were  made, 
even  if  they  were  not  strictly  obeyed.  Toward  the  end 
of  the  fourteenth  century  serving  men  in  England  were 
forbidden  to  wear  cloth  costing  more  than  two  marks, 
that  is,  sixteen  ounces  of  silver,  apiece.  Men  practicing 

82 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

any  handicraft  might  wear  cloth  only  and  no  jewelry; 
while  if  their  wives  ventured  to  wear  any  fur  save  that 
of  lamb,  coney,  cat,  and  fox,  they  were  in  danger  of  get- 


LADIES    OF    THE    I4TH    CENTURY 

ting  into  trouble.  Squires  whose  income  from  land  was 
two  hundred  marks  a  year  were  allowed  to  wear  cloth 
of  silver  and  a  "  reasonable  "  amount  of  silver  ornamenta- 
tion. A  gentleman  with  the  same  income,  but  not  a 

83 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

squire,  was  limited  to  cloth,  and  even  a  "  reasonable  " 
amount  of  jewelry  was  forbidden  him.  Even  a  knight 
with  an  annual  income  of  £200  was  forbidden  to  wear 
cloth  of  gold  and  the  ermine  and  minever,  or  perhaps 
squirrel,  that  were  sacred  to  royalty.  Shoes  were  worn 
with  pointed  toes  so  long  that  they  had  to  be  fastened 
to  the  knees  with  slender  chains  of  gold  or  silver.  Laws 
were  passed  limiting  the  length  of  those  toes  to  two 
inches  ;  but  sumptuary  laws,  as  laws  concerning  dress  are 
called,  are  rarely  obeyed  ;  and  while  the  lawmakers  con- 
tinued to  make  them,  the  people  moved  on  serenely  and 
broke  as  many  of  them  as  their  purses  or  their  credit 
would  permit.  To  the  humbler  folk  it  was  a  mark  of 
rising  in  the  world  to  dress  themselves  a  little  more 
richly  than  the  law  permitted ;  and  as  for  the  great  folk, 
it  would  have  been  strange  enough  if  these  people  so 
independent  in  other  affairs  had  shown  themselves  meek 
and  yielding  in  the  matter  of  the  clothes  that  they  put 
on  their  own  backs  and  paid  for  out  of  their  own  pock- 
ets. The  wearers  of  the  crown  hardly  set  them  an  ex- 
ample of  simplicity,  for  it  is  said  that  Richard  II  had  a 
coat  of  cloth  of  gold  decorated  with  precious  stones 
which  was  worth  thirty  thousand  marks.  His  nobles  had 
no  hesitation  in  following  the  lead  of  their  lord,  and 

84 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

it  is  claimed  that  one  of  them  had  two  hundred  and 
fifty  "  new  sutes  of  apparell  of  cloth  of  gold  or  tissue." 
Such  was  the  dress  of  the  day,  and  the  sombre  old  stone 
walls  of  the  castles  must  have  afforded  a  most  excellent 
background  for  its  display. 

These  brilliant  costumes  were  not  for  everyday  wear, 
however,  for  even  in  a  fortified  castle  there  were  com- 
mon days  and  a  home  life.  The  hall  was  the  centre  of 
this  home  life,  the  general  living  room,  as  has  been  said. 
Of  course  its  size  varied  greatly  according  to  the  wealth 
and  wishes  of  the  master  of  the  castle.  One  hall  is  de- 
scribed as  being  able  to  hold  one  thousand  men.  Others 
were  small ;  but  whether  their  dimensions  were  wide  or 
narrow,  the  general  character  did  not  alter.  For  seats 
there  were  chairs  and  benches,  and  sometimes  handsome 
cushions  on  the  floor,  and  there  was  always  a  fireplace, 
for  many  generations  in  the  centre  of  the  room,  wherein 
big  round  logs  blazed  and  glowed.  Even  the  best  of  fires 
in  an  open  fireplace,  however,  are  inclined  to  "  burn  the 
face  and  freeze  the  back,"  and  the  tapestry  on  the  walls 
served  a  useful  purpose  in  adding  to  the  comfort  of  the 
hall.  In  the  castles  of  wealthy  nobles,  these  hangings 
were  sometimes  made  of  brocade  or  cloth  of  gold  and 
silver  brought  from  the  East;  but  in  the  fifteenth  cen- 

85 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

tury  very  handsome  tapestries  were  woven  in  Europe, 
especially  in  Flanders,  in  what  is  now  called  Belgium, 
and  at  Arras  in  northern  France.  Indeed,  the  Arras  tap- 
estry came  into  so  common  use  that  Shakespeare  says 
"behind  the  arras,"  when  he  means  behind  the  tapestry. 
Some  tapestry  was  simple,  but  that  which  was  made  for 
kings  and  princes  and  cathedrals  was  often  most  elabo- 
rate. It  pictured  scenes  from  the  Bible  or  from  the  lives 
of  saints  or  from  hunting  and  hawking  or  from  some  of 
the  romances  which  were  such  a  delight  to  the  people 
of  the  Middle  Ages. 

Early  in  the  morning  the  watchman  of  the  castle 
sounded  his  horn  from  the  battlements  of  the  keep  to 
say  that  the  sun  had  risen  and  all  was  well.  The  day 
was  short,  for  people  in  general  did  not  sit  up  very  long 
after  the  five  o'clock  supper.  The  dinner  hour  was  from 
nine  to  eleven  in  the  forenoon.  In  the  hall  were  held 
the  mighty  feasts  in  which  the  noble  appetites  of  the 
day  so  rejoiced.  What  would  a  modern  caterer  say  to  a 
bill  of  fare  that  began  boldly  with  venison,  a  quarter  of 
bear,  and  the  shoulder  of  a  wild  boar,  and  worked  its 
way  valiantly  onward  through  a  course  of  roasted  pea- 
cocks and  swans,  a  second  of  poultry,  and  a  third  of 
waterfowl  and  small  game  to  venison  and  pheasant  pasties 

86 


A    DINNER    IN    THE    HALL 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  pigeon  pie  ?  By  the  time  that  this  was  reached,  the 
feast  was  fairly  under  way,  and  the  guests  were  well  pre- 
pared for  such  trifles  as  shad,  salmon,  mullet,  and  eel- 
pie,  the  last  a  special  favorite.  After  this  came  pastry 
of  all  sorts  and  sweetmeats,  then  cloves,  ginger,  and 
other  spices.  These  made  people  ravenously  thirsty,  and 
they  were  quite  ready  for  the  big  cups  of  wine  mixed 
with  honey  or  spice  that  now  appeared.  The  young 
pages  of  the  castle  attended  upon  the  guests,  but  the 
heavier  waiting  was  done  by  stalwart  serving  men. 

A  feast  like  this  was  only  a  simple  repast  compared 
with  that  served  in  1403  at  the  marriage  of  Henry  IV. 
There  were  only  six  courses,  but  a  course  included  an 
amazing  collection  of  eatables.  The  second  course,  for 
instance,  comprised  venison  served  with  frumenty,  a  dish 
made  of  milk,  sugar,  and  wheat;  jelly;  sucking  pigs; 
rabbits;  bitterns;  stuffed  hens;  partridges;  leach,  that  is, 
a  mixture  of  cream,  sugar,  almonds,  and  isinglass;  and 
boiled  meat  of  some  sort.  The  course  ended,  as  did 
every  course,  with  what  was  called  a  "sotelte,"  or 
subtlety.  This  was  somewhat  like  what  is  known  to-day 
as  a  "  float,"  only  on  a  very  small  scale.  One  that  was 
served  at  this  feast  was  an  image  of  a  pelican  sitting  on 
her  nest  with  her  young  ones,  and  beside  it  Saint  Cath- 

88 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

erine  holding  a  book  in  her  hand  and  disputing  with 
the  doctors.  Another  much  more  elaborate  was  made 
for  the  coronation  of  Henry  VI.  In  this,  the  Child 
Jesus  sits  on  his  mother's  knees.  Saint  George  and  Saint 
Denis  kneel  one  on  either  side.  King  Henry  bears  in 
his  hand  a  petition  for  the  favor  of  the  "  Blessyd  Lady, 
Cristes  moder  dere."  These  subtleties  were  made  of  sugar 
or  pastry  and  added  much  to  the  interest  of  the  feast. 
In  general,  however,  the  glory  of  a  banquet  consisted 
not  in  nicety  of  cooking  and  elegance  of  serving,  but 
rather  in  providing  unlimited  quantities  and  countless 
varieties  of  food.  The  peacock  and  the  swan  were  looked 
upon  as  the  most  luxurious  dishes  of  the  age.  The  pea- 
cock was  carefully  skinned,  then  roasted;  but  before  he 
was  brought  to  the  table,  his  skin  was  fastened  around 
him  with  skewers.  An  old  recipe  for  serving  the  swan 
is  as  follows  :  — - 

Make  a  stiff  bed  of  paste  about  the  thickness  of  your  thumb 
and  color  it  green.  Comb  it  out,  and  it  will  look  like  a  meadow 
of  green  grass.  Take  your  swan  and  gild  him  over  with  gold ; 
then  have  a  kind  of  loose,  flying  cloak  of  a  vermilion  color 
within  and  painted  with  arms  without ;  then  set  the  swan  upon 
this  bed,  cover  some  part  of  him  with  the  cloak,  stick  about 
him  small  banners  upon  little  sticks,  the  banners  painted 

89 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

with  the  arms  most  agreeable  to  the  people  seated  at   the 
table. 


As  time  passed,  less  meat  and  more  vegetables  were 
used.  The  bread  was  of  various  sorts.  In  England  the 
best  and  finest  was  marked  with  the  figure  of  Christ  and 
was  called  "  Our  Lord's  bread."  There  were  at  least  two 
grades  of  bread  below  this,  not  counting  the  "  wastel 
bread,"  a  very  coarse  brown  bread.  Wine  was  much  in 
evidence,  but  the  everyday  drinks  were  different  varieties 
of  ale  or  mead. 

The  dishes  used  at  table  varied  as  greatly  as  they  do 
in  the  homes  of  to-day.  The  cups  or  goblets  were  hand- 
some when  the  expense  could  be  afforded.  They  were 
made  of  gold  or  silver  and  beautifully  ornamented  with 
precious  stones.  Often  a  feast  was  lighted  by  men  ranged 
along  the  walls  of  the  room,  bearing  flaming  torches ; 
and  the  jewels  must  have  gleamed  and  flashed  in  the 
ever-changing  glare.  People  ate  from  trenchers,  or  rude 
plates.  At  first,  thick  slices  of  stale  bread  were  used ; 
then  trenchers  were  made  of  wood  and  were  kept  meas- 
urably clean  by  being  scoured  with  ashes.  People  of 
the  thirteenth,  fourteenth,  and  fifteenth  centuries  were 
well  content  to  eat  two  at  a  trencher.  The  phrase,  "  a 

90 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

valiant  trencher  man,"   was  the  literal  description  of 
a  man  with  a  good  appetite  —  and  appetites  ivere  good 


A    KING  S    FEAST 


in  those  days.  Even  in  the  sixteenth  century,  Anne 
Boleyn,  wife  of  Henry  VIII,  regretted  that  she  could 
eat  for  breakfast  only  half  a  pound  of  bacon  and  drink 

91 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

only  half  a  tankard  of  ale.  She  ascribed  her  loss  of 
appetite  to  the  late  hours  that  she  was  keeping,  "  being 
scarcely  in  bed  before  ten,"  she  lamented. 

The  serving  dishes  were  made  of  wood,  pewter,  sil- 
ver, or  gold,  according  to  the  wealth  of  the  master  of 
the  castle.  Knives  and  spoons  and  fingers  were  used  as 
weapons  of  table  warfare.  Forks  were  in  use  in  Italy, 
but  it  was  well  into  the  seventeenth  century  or  even 
later  before  they  became  at  all  common  in  the  other 
countries  of  Europe.  For  a  long  while  they  were  looked 
upon  in  monasteries  as  a  foolish  and  sinful  luxury.  An 
Englishman  who  traveled  in  Italy  in  the  early  part  of 
the  seventeenth  century  was  pleased  with  the  custom, 
"  seeing  that  all  men's  fingers  are  not  alike  clean,"  as  he 
said  pathetically,  and  he  brought  home  one  of  these 
new  implements  for  his  own  use;  whereupon  one,  a 
merry  friend  of  his,  persisted  in  calling  him  the  "  furci- 
fer,"  or  fork-bearer.  For  folk  who  were  not  "fork- 
bearers,"  water  and  towels  were  passed  around  several 
times  during  a  feast.  The  table  linen  was  clean  and 
plentiful ;  but  the  floor  was  covered  with  rushes,  with 
bones  and  other  refuse,  and  perhaps  had  not  been  swept 
for  twenty  years.  A  feast  in  a  nobleman's  castle  was  a 
grotesque  medley  of  splendor  and  filth. 

92 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

No  entertainment  was  looked  upon  as  complete  with- 
out music.  This  was  provided  by  minstrels.  They  used 
a  sort  of  violin,  and  also  the  harp,  lute,  guitar,  bagpipe, 
flute,  and  double-flute,  horn,  and  trumpet,  and  some- 
times the  drum,  tambourine,  cymbals,  and  handbells.  A 
noble  usually  had  one  or  more  minstrels  in  his  service, 


THE    MUSICIANS 


who  wore  at  their  girdles  his  badge,  a  little  scutcheon 
engraved  with  his  coat  of  arms.  While  the  great  folk 
feasted,  the  minstrels  played  and  sang,  sometimes  in 
their  own  gallery,  sometimes,  on  less  formal  occasions, 
from  seats  on  the  floor,  or  even  on  the  edge  of  the  table. 
They  sang  merry  little  ballads  and  favorite  bits  from  the 
longer  poems  glorifying  the  noble  deeds  of  heroes,  and 
they  also  gave  long  recitations  from  the  romances  that  the 
people  of  those  times  found  so  thrillingly  entertaining. 

93 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Besides  the  minstrels  who  were  members  of  noble 
households,  there  were  also  the  wandering  singers,  some 
of  good  family,  who  became  minstrels  for  a  time  in  or- 
der to  gratify  a  taste  for  roving.  Many  of  these  had  real 
talent,  and  they  roamed  through  the  lands,  sure  of  a 
friendly  greeting,  a  cup  of  wine,  and  a  generous  meal 


THE    JUGGLERS 

wherever  they  might  go.  If  the  minstrel's  songs  were 
pleasing  to  the  lord  of  the  castle,  the  singer  went  away 
rejoicing  in  a  goodly  sum  of  money.  If  neither  the  lord 
nor  his  guests  were  liberally  inclined,  many  minstrels 
were  not  above  stopping  in  the  midst  of  their  song  or 
story  and  saying,  "  If  you  wish  to  hear  any  more  of  this 
poem,  you  must  make  haste  to  open  your  purses.' *  Min- 
strels were  free  to  go  where  they  would,  for  all  classes 
of  people  welcomed  them.  It  is  told  of  Alfred  the 

94 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

Great  that  he  disguised  himself  as  a  wandering  singer 
and  went  fearlessly  into  the  camp  of  his  enemies. 
Whether  this  is  doubtful  or  not  in  the  case  of  Alfred,  it 
was  certainly  true  in  many  other  cases ;  for  at  the  sound 
of  a  harp  or  violin  the  good  folk  of  the  Middle  Ages 
seemed  to  lay  aside  all  caution  and  for- 
get all  danger. 

Besides  music,  other  entertainment 
was  provided  for  the  guests  at  these 
banquets  by  jugglers,  or  sleight-of-hand 
performers,  who  went  through  acro- 
batic feats  and  the  old  tricks  of  balanc- 
ing weights  on  long  poles,  tossing  up 
balls  and  keeping  several  up  in  the  air 
at  the  same  time,  exhibiting  trained 
bears,  and  carrying  on  any  sort  of  jest- 
ing that  seemed  to  amuse  their  audience. 
A  similar  entertainment  was  provided  by  the  "  fool  "  of 
the  castle,  for  kings  and  wealthy  men  were  in  the  habit 
of  keeping  a  jester  who  was  known  by  that  name.  He 
often  wore  a  cap  and  bells  or  a  costume  half  one  color 
and  half  another,  or  even  shaved  half  his  hair  and 
half  his  beard  to  suit  the  rather  crude  ideas  of  what  was 
considered  comical.  His  joking  was  frequently  coarse 

95 


ACROBATS 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  rough,  but  it  was  to  the  point,  for  only  a  keen, 
shrewd  man  could  play  well  the  part  of  fool.  In  Shake- 
speare's dramas 
it  happens  more 
than  once  that 
the  fool  mani- 
fests more  close- 
ness of  observa- 
tion and  more 
common  sense 
than  any  one  else 
in  the  play. 

Among  these 
strolling  com- 
panies of  singers 
an  d  j  ugglers 
there  were  also 
women  dancers, 
who  met  with 
great  favor.  The 
popular  notion  of  a  dexterous  dancer  was  one  who  could 
support  herself  on  her  hands  while  her  feet  were  high 
up  in  the  air.  If  she  could  rest  her  hands  on  two  swords 
and  still  maintain  her  equilibrium,  that  was  indeed  skill, 

96 


A    JESTER 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

and  the  spectators  shouted  their  applause  and  threw  their 
coins  with  delight. 

But  the  hall  was  far  more  than  a  mere  place  of  feast- 
ing. Here  sat  the  lady  of  the  castle  and  her  maidens, 


A    BEDROOM    PARTY 


daughters  of  other  noble  families  who  had  come  to  her 
to  learn  housewifery  just  as  their  brothers  had  come  to 
her  husband  to  learn  to  become  knights.  These  young 
girls  were  taught  to  manage  a  household,  to  sew  and  em- 
broider, to  card  wool  and  spin  and  weave.  They  learned 

97 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  say  the  prayers  of  the  Church,  to  sing,  and  to  play  sim- 
ple accompaniments  on  the  harp  or  viol.  A  little  of 
astronomy  too,  they  learned,  enough  at  least  to  name  a 
few  of  the  constellations  ;  possibly  a  little  of  reading  and 
writing,  and  more  than  a  little  of  falconry.  They  must 

ride  well,  of  course,  for  to 
make  a  poor  appearance 
in  the  hunting  field  or  in 
practicing  the  "  mystery  of 
rivers'*  would  be  indeed  a 
disgrace.  One  thing  they 
were  taught  with  especial 
thoroughness,  and  that  was 
enough  of  surgery  and  medi- 
cine and  nursing  to  care  for 
a  wounded  knight.  Some- 
what of  warfare,  too,  they  must  know;  for  when  the 
lord  of  the  castle  was  away,  it  was  his  wife  who  must 
command  the  men  at  arms  and  either  save  or  lose  her 
home.  The  girls  of  the  castle  played  checkers,  chess, 
backgammon,  and  battledoor  and  shuttlecock,  they  had 
their  pet  birds,  magpies,  larks,  and  sometimes  parrots, 
or  popinjays,  as  they  were  called.  Falcons  were  pets  as 
well  as  hunters,  and  often  made  their  entrance  into  society 

98 


LADY    AT    LOOM 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

perched  upon  the  wrists  of  their  mistresses.  The  maidens 
of  the  Middle  Ages  liked  to  go  on  picnics,  to  dance,  and 
to  wear  their  best  clothes;  they  enjoyed  putting  on 
jeweled  belts  and  pretty  ornaments  and  soft  furs  and 
dainty  silks  just  as  much  as  any 
girls  of  to-day,  and  they  were  just 
as  delighted  when  there  was  to 
be  a  tournament  as  girls  are  to- 
day at  the  prospect  of  any  enter- 
tainment. 

All  sorts  of  folk  came  into  the 
hall.  In  many  places  the  poor 
of  the  neighborhood  came  every 
morning  to  ask  for  bread.  If  any 
fighting  was  near  at  hand  —  and 
the  chief  business  of  the  time 
was  fighting  and  hunting  —  a 
wounded  man  often  made  his  way  to  the  castle  to  beg 
for  help  and  care.  Sometimes,  as  has  been  said,  a 
knight  errant  called  to  the  porter  at  the  gate  and  bade 
him  bear  a  friendly  challenge  to  the  other  knights  within 
the  walls.  Then  followed  a  delightful  confusion.  The 
lists  were  staked  out  in  some  meadow  near  the  castle  or 
perhaps  in  the  outer  court.  The  crowd  of  followers  and 

99 


FALCONRY 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

dependents  of  the  lord  flocked  about  the  ropes,  and  the 
ladies  of  the  castle  waved  bright-colored  scarfs  from  win- 
dows and  battlements.  Vassals,  or  those  who  held  land  of 
the  master  of  the  castle  on  condition  of  service,  came  to 
"pay  homage/*  that  is,  to  kneel  before  him,  their  hands 
clasped  in  his,  and  promise  to  be  faithful  to  him.  Trav- 


LADIES    PLAYING    GAMES 


eling  merchants  came  to  open  their  packs  and  reveal  the 
dazzling  fabrics  of  the  East.  Pilgrims  who  had  wandered 
through  many  lands  in  order  to  visit  some  holy  place 
were  always  going  to  and  fro  and  always  welcome.  When 
ten  or  eleven  o'clock  had  come,  the  horn  was  blown, 
the  long  tables  were  spread,  and  all  gathered  around 
them,  whether  rich  or  poor,  noble  or  simple.  Those  to 

IOO 


Daily  Life  in  a  Castle 

whom  special  honor  was  to  be  shown  were  seated 
"  above  the  salt,"  that  is,  near  the  lord's  end  of  the  table 
and  separated  from  the  common  folk  by  an  elaborate  salt- 
cellar. After  the  meal,  there  were  games  —  chess,  back- 
gammon, cards,  and  checkers — and  also  music  and  danc- 


DANCING 


ing.  Every  visitor  had  some  story  to  tell ;  the  dogs  lay 
about  the  hearth,  and  now  and  then  one  pricked  up  his 
ears  and  wagged  his  tail  sleepily  when  he  heard  his  mas- 
ter praise  some  exploit  of  his  in  the  hunt.  The  flames 
blazed  up  merrily,  and  the  gloomy  hall  became  bright 
and  cheerful.  It  was  the  very  heart  of  home,  and  when 
a  wounded  knight  lay  dying  in  some  foreign  land,  it  was 
his  own  hall,  which  he  should  never  see  again,  of  which 
he  thought  with  eager  longing. 

IOI 


CHAPTER    VI 

LIFE  ON  A  MANOR 

DURING  the  greater  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  most  of 
the  land  was  held  by  "feudal  tenure/'  that  is,  on  con- 
dition of  service.  Everybody  needed  service  of  some 
sort.  A  king  might  own  vast  areas  of  land;  but  unless 
the  nobles  would  fight  for  him,  he  could  not  keep  it 
from  his  enemies.  The  nobles  might  hold  wide  estates, 
but  they  were  worthless  unless  men  could  be  found  to 
cultivate  them.  As  for  the  "common  people/'  their 
first  and  foremost  need  was  protection.  So  it  was  that 
the  feudal  system  grew  up.  The  king  would  agree  to 
grant  land  to  a  noble  provided  the  noble  would  become 
his  "vassal."  To  do  this,  the  noble  was  obliged  to  go 
to  the  king's  court  and  kneel  before  him.  The  king 
then  held  the  clasped  hands  of  the  noble  in  his  own  and 
asked,  "  Do  you  wish  to  become  my  man  ?"  The  noble 
replied,  "  I  do."  The  king  then  kissed  him  in  token 
of  confidence  and  acceptance,  and  the  noble  took  a 
solemn  oath  on  the  Gospels  or  relics  of  the  saints  to  be 
faithful.  This  ceremony  was  called  "  doing  homage." 

102 


Life  on  a  Manor 

It  bound  the  king  to  aid  and  protect  the  noble  and  not 
to  interfere  with  his  control  of  the  land  in  his  hands. 
It  bound  the  noble  to  be  faithful  to  the  king  and  to 
fight  for  him  when  fighting  was  necessary,  and  to  pro- 


BELSAY    CASTLE 


vide  at  his  own  expense  a  fixed  number  of  followers. 
For  the  king  to  demand  money  and  for  the  noble  to 
pay  it  would  have  seemed  to  both  of  them  somewhat 
humiliating;  but  to  follow  his  king  in  battle  and  to  be 
loyal  to  him  was  quite  in  accordance  with  the  taste  and 

103 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

training  of  the  noble.  Even  in  later  times,  as  the  de- 
mand for  a  military  force  increased,  the  king  did  not 
venture  to  suggest  paying  wages  to  knights  to  fight  for 
him.  Instead  of  that,  "  money-fiefs  "  were  invented ;  that 
is,  a  fixed  sum  was  paid  to  vassals  yearly  on  condition 
of  their  performing  military  service.  This  was  exactly 
the  same  as  hiring  soldiers,  but  calling  the  arrangement 
a  fief,  the  name  given  to  a  grant  of  land,  saved  the  pride 
of  the  knights,  and  gave  the  king  his  soldiers. 

The  military  service  required  of  a  vassal  was  generally 
limited  to  forty  days  in  a  year.  If  more  was  needed,  the 
king  must  pay  all  expenses.  If  the  military  service  was 
to  be  rendered  in  a  foreign  country,  the  noble  was  free 
to  come  home  at  the  end  of  forty  days.  He  must  also 
help  the  king  by  his  advice,  and  must  submit  in  any  law- 
suit of  his  own  to  the  decision  of  the  king  and  his  fellow 
vassals,  and  he  must  provide  entertainment  for  the  king 
when  on  a  journey.  On  three  occasions  he  was  expected  to 
assist  the  king  with  money,  but  this  was  never  called  pay- 
ment or  rent  for  land,  it  was  always  spoken  of  as  "  aid." 
These  occasions  were :  i .  When  the  king's  eldest  son 
was  made  a  knight;  2.  When  the  king's  eldest  daughter 
was  married;  3.  When  the  king  had  been  taken  prisoner 
by  some  foreign  power  and  it  was  necessary  to  ransom  him. 

104 


Life  on  a  Manor 

In  theory,  the  king  had  a  right  to  take  back  the  grant 
of  land ;  but  unless  a  vassal  was  unfaithful,  it  was  seldom 
to  his  advantage  to  do  so.  If  one  vassal  was  wronged  by 
another,  he  might  appeal  to  their  king;  but  it  was  in 
most  cases  a  long  way  to  the  royal  court,  it  was  dan- 
gerous to  leave  one's  castle  exposed  to  an  enemy,  and  it 
was  more  simple  and  direct  for  the  two  nobles  to  fight 
it  out.  If  a  vassal  died,  it  was  generally  for  the  gain  of 
both  parties  that  his  eldest  son  should  take  the  father's 
place  as  vassal.  The  lord  imposed  a  tax,  however,  called 
"heriot,"  usually  the  best  beast  of  the  dead  man.  The 
son,  too,  was  required  to  pay  a  tax,  or  "relief,"  on 
taking  possession  of  the  land  in  his  father's  stead.  The 
accepted  belief  was  that  every  fief  should  supply  to  the 
king  the  service  of  a  man.  If  the  vassal's  son  was  a  child 
at  his  father's  death,  the  king  brought  him  up;  but  to 
make  good  the  loss  of  a  fighting  man,  he  kept  the  in- 
come of  the  fief  until  the  boy  was  old  enough  to  per- 
form a  knight's  service.  If  the  vassal  left  only  a  widow 
or  a  daughter,  she  must  pay  a  fine  to  the  king  if  she  did 
not  wish  to  marry.  If  she  was  willing  to  marry,  the 
king  had  the  right  to  select  her  husband.  This  was  to 
prevent  her  from  choosing  a  man  who  might  perhaps 
be  an  enemy  to  the  king. 

105 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

This  was  the  "  feudal  system,"  or  rather  it  was  the 
beginning  of  it.  It  is  quite  probable  that  in  many 
countries,  at  some  time  in  their  history,  land  has  been 
held  by  this  method.  Of  course  it  was  not  decided  upon 
and  the  land  divided  in  a  moment  in  any  country,  but 
the  custom  grew  up  gradually.  The  system  was  in  reality 
a  perfect  network  of  lords  and  vassals,  for  not  only  were 
the  nobles  vassals  of  the  king,  but  they  themselves  had 
vassals,  and  those  vassals  had  others  who  had  paid  hom- 
age to  them.  Indeed,  a  man  might  do  homage  to  a  num- 
ber of  men  for  separate  pieces  of  land.  In  that  case, 
however,  he  owed  military  duty  to  but  one  of  them,  and 
this  one  was  known  as  his  "liege"  lord.  The  vassal 
was  not  looked  upon  as  in  any  degree  inferior  to  the 
lord.  A  king  might  rule  one  country  and  yet  pay  hom- 
age to  the  ruler  of  another  for  his  fief  in  that  land. 
When  William  the  Norman  conquered  England,  he 
took  possession  of  the  country  much  as  if  it  had  been  his 
own  big  farm.  He  allowed  those  who  yielded  to  him 
to  retain  their  land  on  payment  of  large  fees.  The  rest 
of  it  he  divided  among  his  followers  as  fiefs.  But  William 
was  Duke  of  Normandy,  and  therefore  he  himself  paid 
homage  to  the  French  king  for  his  Norman  land.  This 
descended  from  one  English  ruler  to  another;  but  when 

106  » 


Life  on  a  Manor 

John  came  to  the  throne,  the  French  king,  Philip  II, 
declared  that  he  was  a  disobedient  and  unfaithful  vassal, 
and  took  it  away  by  capturing  the  Chateau  Gaillard  and 
his  other  strongholds. 

There  were  several  ways  in  which  smaller  amounts 
of  land  came  into  the  hands  of  the  nobles.  The  Church 
held  large  areas ;  but  the  clergy  were  forbidden  to  wield 
the  sword,  therefore  parts  of  their  holdings  were  some- 
times let  to  knights  on  condition  of  their  providing  the 
required  number  of  soldiers.  Again,  this  was  a  time  of 
fighting  and  bloodshed,  of  danger  and  violence;  and 
many  a  man  who  owned  a  bit  of  freehold  could  not 
protect  it.  In  that  case  he  would  often  "commend" 
himself  to  some  powerful  man ;  that  is,  he  would  pro- 
mise to  be  faithful  to  him  and  be  his  loyal  vassal.  He 
now  had  a  strong  arm  to  defend  him,  and  he  was  sure 
of  food  and  clothes.  The  result  of  all  this  was  that  by 
the  thirteenth  century  it  might  almost  be  said,  "No 
land  without  a  lord/* 

But  manors  were  of  small  value  unless  they  were  cul- 
tivated. In  these  days,  if  a  man  owns  a  large  farm,  he 
hires  laborers  to  work  on  it ;  but  in  the  Middle  Ages  the 
cultivation  of  the  land  was  managed  in  quite  a  different 
fashion.  Nothing  has  been  said  as  yet  of  the  "  common 

107 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

folk,"  the  many  thousand  people  who  were  neither 
clergy  nor  nobles.  They  were  the  ones  who  did  the  work 
of  the  manors.  They  were  of  various  ranks.  A  few  were 
slaves,  and  were  looked  upon  as  having  no  more  rights 
than  a  horse  or  a  cow.  Above  these  were  the  villeins. 
They  could  not  be  sold  like  slaves,  but  if  a  manor  passed 
from  one  lord  to  another,  they  went  with  it.  Each  vil- 
lein held  a  definite  amount  of  land,  and  was  required  to 
pay  for  its  use  partly  in  money  or  in  produce  and  partly 
in  labor.  The  villeins  were  divided  into  several  classes, 
each  having  some  special  rights  or  some  exemption  from 
undesirable  duties  which  was  of  great  value  to  them. 
Above  these  were  the  free  tenants.  They  paid  for  the 
use  of  their  land,  sometimes  in  service  and  sometimes 
entirely  in  money. 

The  buildings  on  a  manor  were  the  manor  house,  in 
which  either  the  lord  or  his  agent  lived ;  the  tiny  cottages 
of  the  tenants ;  a  church ;  a  windmill ;  and  the  various 
barns  and  other  outbuildings  needed.  The  manor  house 
stood  a  little  apart  from  the  others.  It  was  usually  of 
stone,  but  its  character  depended  in  great  degree  upon  the 
location.  In  England,  for  instance,  the  important  houses 
near  the  Scottish  border  were  built  strong  enough  to  serve 
as  forts;  and,  indeed,  most  of  the  larger  houses  in  the  more 

108 


log 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

level  parts  of  the  country  were  surrounded  by  moats  and 
had  various  means  of  defense.  In  the  simpler  houses  there 
was  a  hall,  and  adjoining  it  a  kitchen.  On  the  other 
side  of  the  hall  and  up  a  flight  of  stairs  was  the  "solar/* 
This  was  the  bedroom  and  parlor  of  the  lord  and  his  wife. 
The  rest  of  the  household  and  their  guests  slept  in  the 
hall  or  in  the  stables  or  in  any  other  place  where  they 
would  be  under  a  roof,  even  one  thatched  with  reeds 
from  the  pond.  As  time  passed,  houses  were  built  with 
more  rooms,  often  enough  to  enclose  a  courtyard  on 
three  sides,  while  the  fourth  was  shut  in  by  a  wall. 
Around  the  whole  structure  was  a  moat  with  a  draw- 
bridge. The  windows  were  small,  there  were  turrets  and 
other  places  from  which  arrows  might  be  shot  in  safety ; 
in  short,  these  manor  houses  were  in  many  respects  al- 
most as  well  fortified  as  real  castles.  The  cottages  were 
ranged  along  the  one  street  of  the  manor,  miserable  little 
one-room  sheds  of  clay,  the  roofs  thatched  with  straw 
stubble  and  having  neither  windows  nor  chimneys. 

The  land  of  the  manor  was  cultivated  in  three  large 
fields.  Usually  one  produced  wheat  or  barley  and  one 
oats,  while  the  third  lay  fallow.  The  second  year  the 
field  that  had  lain  fallow  was  planted,  and  another  field 
had  a  time  of  rest.  This  was  an  extravagant  manner  of 

I  10 


Life  on  a  Manor 

farming,  for  one  third  of  the  land  was  always  idle,  but 
men  had  not  fully  learned  how  to  enrich  the  soil,  and 
therefore  they  were  forced  to  allow  it  to  rest.  Each  ten- 
ant had  a  larger  or  smaller  share  in  these  fields ;  but  the 

^" 

land  was  divided  in  a  peculiar  fashion.  It  was  marked  off 
into  long,  narrow  strips,  generally  about  forty  rods  long 
and  four  rods  wide,  separated  from  one  another  by  strips 
of  unploughed  turf  called  "balks."  The  holdings  of 
the  different  tenants  were  scattered  over  the  manor,  and 
much  time  must  have  been  wasted  in  going  from  one 
to  another.  A  man  who  held  thirty  acres,  or  a  virgate, 
might  have  to  care  for  land  in  thirty  or  more  different 
places.  Even  the  land  which  the  lord  of  the  manor  re- 
served for  himself  was  scattered  in  the  same  way.  The 
use  of  clover  and  the  grasses  which  can  be  cultivated  in 
dry  places  and  stored  away  for  winter  was  not  known, 
therefore  the  meadow  land  of  the  manor  was  of  great 
value.  There  was  always  a  common  pasture  in  which 
sheep  and  cattle  might  range ;  and  there  was  woodland, 
wherein  the  tenants'  pigs  might  find  food  for  them- 
selves. 

The  tenants  were  obliged  to  grind  their  grain  in  the 
lord's  mill,  bake  their  bread  in  his  oven,  press  their  grapes 
in  his  winepress,  and  of  course  pay  a  good  price*  for  the 

III 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

privileges.  They  must  pay  for  letting  their  pigs  run  in 
the  forest,  for  cutting  wood,  and  often  for  catching  fish, 
and  for  the  use  of  their  lord's  weights  and  measures.  They 
paid  him  a  share  of  what  they  raised,  and  they  paid  one 
tenth  of  their  income  to  the  Church  besides  fees  at  every 
birth,  baptism,  marriage,  and  death.  Even  what  was  left 
of  their  produce  they  were  forbidden  to  sell  until  the  pro- 
duce of  their  lord's  land  had  been  sold.  This  land,  or  the 
"  demesne/'  they  were  obliged  to  cultivate,  each  villein 
doing  an  amount  of  work  in  proportion  to  the  area  which 
he  held.  The  lists  of  the  men  and  the  work  required  of 
each  were  called  "  extents."  An  extent  usually  stated, 
first,  the  size  of  the  manor  and  how  it  was  divided,  how 
many  acres  of  arable  land,  pasture,  meadow,  and  wood- 
land it  contained,  and  how  often  the  manor  court  was 
accustomed  to  meet.  Then  came  the  list  of  the  tenants, 
what  rent  they  paid,  and  what  work  was  required  of 
them.  On  one  of  the  English  manors,  for  instance,  there 
were  seven  free  tenants.  One  of  them  was  the  son  of  a 
knight.  He  held  eighteen  acres  and  paid  for  his  land 
thirty-six  pence  a  year.  Apparently  these  free  tenants 
were  not  obliged  to  do  any  work  on  the  demesne.  Some 
of  the  villein  tenants,  however,  had  to  do  so  many  kinds 
of  work  that  it  is  a  wonder  how  they  knew  when  it 

112 


PLAN    OF    A    MANOR 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

was  finished.  One  poor  man  had  to  work  for  his  land 
three  days  a  week  for  eleven  months  of  the  year,  save  for 
a  week  at  Christmas,  Easter,  and  Whitsuntide,  and  find 
his  own  food.  He  must  weed,  help  plough  and  mow,  carry 
in  hay,  reap,  and  haul  grain.  It  was  carefully  stated 
just  when  the  lord  would  provide  food  for  him  and  how 
much  and  what  kind.  When  this  man  and  the  other 
villeins  were  mowing,  they  were  allowed  three  bushels 
of  wheat,  one  ram  worth  eighteen  pence,  one  jar  of  but- 
ter, and  one  cheese  "next  to  the  best  from  the  dairy  of 
the  lord,"  and  salt  and  oatmeal  for  their  porridge,  and 
all  the  morning  milk.  They  had  also  several  definite 
perquisites  while  they  were  doing  this  work;  for  in- 
stance, at  the  close  of  each  day  every  man  might  have  as 
much  green  grass  as  he  could  carry  on  the  point  of  his 
scythe ;  and  when  the  hay  was  in,  he  might  have  a  cart- 
ful. At  harvest  time,  each  worker  might  have  three 
handfuls  for  every  load  of  grain  that  he  brought  in.  Be- 
sides the  weekly  work  during  the  greater  part  of  the 
year,  there  were  also  "  boon-works  "  in  time  of  plough- 
ing, planting,  and  harvest.  For  these,  the  tenant  must 
leave  his  own  land,  often  when  it  needed  him  most,  and 
give  his  time  to  that  of  his  lord.  In  short,  more  than  one 
half  of  the  time  of  the  average  villein  had  to  be  given  to 

114 


Life  on  a  Manor 

the  lord  of  the  manor.  Just  how  some  of  the  dues  were 
paid  is  a  little  confusing.  One  tenant,  for  instance,  was 
bound  to  pay  the  lord  every  Christmas  "  one  hen  and  a 
half,  the  hen  being  of  the  price  of  one  and  one  half 
pence."  Several  women  held  land  on  the  same  terms  as 
the  men.  The  extent  also  stated  the  value  of  the  rents,  the 
hens  given  to  the  lord,  the  use  of  the  mill,  the  right  to  fish, 
and  all  the  service  performed  by  the  tenants  ;  and  it  told 
where  the  pillory  and  ducking-stool  stood.  In  this  case, 
there  was  more  than  one  reason  to  avoid  these  instru- 
ments of  punishment,  for  they  were  placed  next  to  the 
lord's  pigstye. 

Legal  questions  often  arose  on  a  manor,  land  was 
transferred  from  one  person  to  another,  fines  were  to  be 
imposed,  crimes  were  to  be  punished,  and  to  decide 
these  matters  a  court  was  held  regularly.  This  was  con- 
venient for  the  tenants,  but  it  can  hardly  have  been  in- 
variably just,  for  the  lord  or  his  agent  was  the  judge,  and 
he  generally  had  a  personal  interest  in  the  cases.  More- 
over, the  various  fines  and  fees  went  straight  into  his 
own  purse,  and  that  must  have  made  it  a  temptation  to 
inflict  as  heavy  ones  as  would  be  borne.  In  theory,  there 
could  be  an  appeal  to  the  king ;  but  the  king  was  usually 
a  long  way  off,  travel  was  not  safe,  and  in  any  case  the 

"5 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

word  of  a  villein  would  count  little  when  opposed  to 
the  word  of  a  noble. 

A  manor  did  not  run  itself.  It  had  three  chief  offi- 
cials besides  its  lord.  First,  there  was  the  reeve.  He 
was  one  of  the  tenants,  and  his  business  was  to  carry  on 
the  cultivation  of  the  lord's  land.  Then  there  was  the 
bailiff,  who  took  charge  of  the  whole  manor,  saw  that 
the  work  was  done  and  the  produce  sold.  But  a  noble 
often  held  a  number  of  manors,  and  so  a  steward  was 
also  required,  who  went  from  one  manor  to  another  to 
examine  the  accounts  of  each,  hold  court,  and  take  gen- 
eral charge  of  the  estates.  So  it  was  that  the  reeve 
watched  the  tenants,  the  bailiff  watched  the  reeve,  the 
steward  watched  the  bailiff;  and  finally  an  accountant, 
sometimes  a  relative  of  the  lord,  watched  the  steward 
and  collected  the  money  from  the  different  manors. 
Over  them  all  was  the  lord  himself.  He  and  his  family 
and  servants  went  from  one  manor  to  another,  partly  to 
use  up  what  they  could  of  produce  on  the  spot,  and 
partly,  it  is  whispered,  because  so  little  attention  was 
paid  to  cleanliness  that  it  was  the  part  of  comfort  as 
well  as  wisdom  to  allow  a  house  to  "sweeten  "  after  it 
had  been  occupied  for  some  weeks. 

A  manor  required  far  less  from  the  outside  world 

116 


Life  on  a  Manor 

than  any  village  or  city  in  these  days.  Food,  with  the 
exception  of  salt  and  the  delicacies  brought  for  the  use 
of  the  lord,  grew  on  the  land.  Hemp  and  wool  were 
raised,  spun  into  yarn,  woven,  and  made  into  clothes  on 
the  spot.  Sandals  could  be  made  by  any  one,  and  rough 
shoes  could  be  put  together  by  the  shoemaker  of  the 
manor.  There  was  also  a  carpenter,  who  could  easily 
put  up  the  wattled  huts  of  the  tenants.  If  anything  more 
elaborate  was  to  be  undertaken,  like  the  building  of  a 
church,  builders  were  sent  for  from  away.  The  black- 
smith mended  the  tools  and  farming  implements  and 
often  made  them.  Clumsy,  inconvenient  things  they 
were.  The  scythes  were  short  and  straight,  and  the 
sickles  small  and  heavy.  The  great  wooden  ploughs 
were  so  big  and  cumbersome  that  even  with  eight  oxen 
to  pull  them  they  cut  into  the  ground  only  a  little  way, 
and  a  second  ploughing  was  usually  necessary.  Enrich- 
ing the  land  and  draining  the  soil  were  rarely  practiced 
during  the  earlier  part  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Crops  at 
best  were  small,  often  not  more  than  one  third  of  what 
the  same  amount  of  land  would  produce  to-day.  Fre- 
quently they  failed  almost  altogether,  because  so  little  was 
known  of  agriculture ;  and  even  when  there  was  a  year 
of  plenty,  it  was  hardly  safe  to  sell  the  surplus,  for  it 

IT7 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

might  all  be  needed  during  the  following  year.  The 
tenant  had  a  hard  life,  but  he  was  sure  of  as  much  pro- 
tection as  his  lord  could  give,  of  a  place  to  stay  in,  and 
of  an  opportunity  to  raise  something  to  eat.  He  had  no 
freedom, .but  in  the  times  when  freedom  means  danger, 
one  does  not  grieve  so  sorely  over  the  loss  of  liberty. 
William  Langland,  who  wrote  Piers  Plowman,  tells  how 
constantly  the  women  worked.  They  must  spin  and 
card  and  comb  wool,  he  says,  trying  to  earn  enough  to 
pay  the  rent  and  the  cost  of  milk  and  meal  to  feed 
their  little  ones ;  they  must  mend  and  wash  and  reel, 
and  peel  rushes,  so  that  it  is  a  sad  story  to  read  the  suf- 
ferings of  the  women  who  live  in  cottages. 

But  as  the  years  passed,  the  times  changed.  The  ten- 
ants took  little  interest  in  the  forced  cultivation  of  their 
lord's  land,  and  with  all  the  watching  it  seldom  brought 
in  as  much  income  as  it  might,  certainly  not  so  much 
as  the  lords  desired,  for  many  luxuries  were  now  im- 
ported, people  were  interested  in  building,  and  they  had 
developed  a  taste  for  living  comfortably.  These  changes 
had  been  caused  in  great  degree  by  the  crusades  or  mil- 
itary expeditions  to  rescue  the  Holy  Land  from  the 
Saracens ;  but,  whatever  was  the  cause,  the  nobles  wanted 
money. 

118 


Life  on  a  Manor 

The  villeins,  on  the  other  hand,  wanted  to  get  rid  of 
forced  labor.  Buying  a  release  from  disagreeable  duties 
was  quite  in  fashion.  Even  nobles  often  bought  them- 
selves free  from  entertaining  the  king.  In  many  cases 
the  peasants  were  permitted  to  buy  a  release  from  the 


OLD    MANOR    HOUSE 


services  that  they  especially  disliked.  In  some  instances, 
where  the  lord  was  in  pressing  need  of  money,  he  in- 
sisted upon  a  tenant's  buying  his  freedom.  If  a  lord  had 
a  good  supply  of  workmen,  a  tenant  was  sometimes  al- 
lowed to  leave  the  manor  on  condition  of  paying  a  tax. 
The  Church  was  the  friend  of  the  tenant.  It  taught 
that  to  free  a  serf  was  a  deed  pleasing  to  God ;  and  if 
the  son  of  the  poorest  serf  showed  intellectual  ability 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  aptitude  for  the  priesthood,  it  demanded  his  release. 
It  is  thought  that  William  Langland  was  a  villein  and 
became  free  on  entering  the  Church.  A  tenant  could 
sometimes  escape  to  some  city  and  find  friends  who 
would  conceal  him ;  and  in  England  there  was  a  law  that 
if  a  man  could  succeed  in  remaining  hidden  for  a  year 
and  a  day,  he  was  forever  free.  Many  of  these  runa- 
ways knew  some  trade  by  which  they  could  support 
themselves.  There  were  tanners,  carpenters,  saddlers, 
shoemakers,  blacksmiths,  and  tailors  among  them.  Early 
in  the  fourteenth  century  the  weaving  of  fine  woolens 
was  introduced  into  England;  and  at  this  trade  espe- 
cially a  man  could  earn  a  good  support. 

Little  by  little,  then,  the  villeins  were  discovering 
that  the  lords  needed  them  quite  as  much  as  they 
needed  the  lords.  If  a  lord  did  not  treat  his  laborers 
well,  he  would  be  likely  to  lose  some  of  them.  As  time 
passed,  more  and  more  of  the  tenants  paid  rent  instead 
of  giving  service ;  and  the  lords  could  not  always  get  as 
much  service  as  they  needed.  More  and  more  men  be- 
came free  to  go  from  one  manor  to  another  as  hired 
laborers.  Villeinage  would  probably  have  slowly  disap- 
peared in  any  case,  but  in  the  fourteenth  century  the 
system  received  two  great  shocks.  One  was  the  fact 

I  2O 


Life  on  a  Manor 

that  when  England  fought  France  at  the  battle  of 
Crecy,  the  day  was  won  for  the  English,  not  by  knights 
in  steel  armor,  but  by  yeomen  with  their  bows  and 
arrows.  The  other  was  the  terrible  Black  Death,  a  pes- 
tilence which  swept  over  Europe.  It  is  thought  to  have 
destroyed  nearly  one  third  as  many  people  as  there  are 
in  the  United  States.  Then  the  lords  or  their  heirs 
were  in  difficulties.  They  received  a  heriot  on  the  death 
of  a  villein  and  the  usual  relief  from  his  heir ;  but  so 
many  had  died  that  few  manors  had  men  enough  left 
to  do  the  necessary  work.  The  success  at  Crecy  had 
shown  the  common  folk  that  they  were  able  to  pro- 
tect themselves;  and  now  that  laborers  were  few,  they 
began  to  see  that  they  were  an  important  part  of  the 
population.  In  England  occurred  an  uprising  known  as 
the  Peasants'  Revolt.  The  chief  demand  of  these  peas- 
ants was  to  be  free  from  villeinage ;  and  although  the 
revolters  were  severely  punished,  villeinage  rapidly  dis- 
appeared. France,  too,  had  learned  a  lesson  from  her 
defeats  at  Crecy  and  elsewhere,  for  she  had  found  that 
her  knights  in  all  their  armor  could  not  protect  their 
country.  People  began  to  question,  "  If  knights  cannot 
even  guard  their  own  land,  what  is  the  use  of  knight- 
hood ?"  and  both  knighthood  and  the  manor  system 

121 


When  Knights  were  Bold  * 

gradually  disappeared.  But  although  the  system  has 
vanished,  it  still  influences  the  law ;  for  instance,  the  be- 
lief of  the  Middle  Ages  was  that  the  land  of  a  country 
belonged  to  the  king  and  was  granted  by  him  to  his 
vassals  for  life ;  and  to-day  if  a  man  in  England  dies  in- 
testate and  without  heirs,  his  land  goes  to  the  King ;  in 
America  it  goes  to  the  state.  So  it  is  that  people  of  the 
twentieth  century  are  affected  by  the  beliefs  and  customs 
of  the  people  who  lived  on  manors  many  hundred  years 
ago. 


CHAPTER    VII 

PILGRIMAGES  AND   CRUSADES 

LIFE  in  the  Middle  Ages  was  not  all  made  up  of  tour- 
naments and  battles  and  sieges  of  castles.  People  thought 
a  good  deal  of  how  to  escape  being  punished  for  their 
sins  and  how  to  make  sure  of  going  to  heaven  when 
they  died.  The  way  that  seemed  to  them  most  certain 
to  accomplish  these  objects  was  to  make  pilgrimages,  or 
visits  to  holy  places.  The  pilgrimage  that  was  looked 
upon  as  most  profitable  was  that  to  the  Holy  Land ;  but 
this  was  a  long,  difficult  journey  and  quite  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  masses  of  people.  Fortunately  for  them, 
almost  every  cathedral  was  believed  to  be  favored  by 
some  saint,  and  there  were  few  persons  who  could  not 
at  some  time  in  their  lives  make  a  visit  to  at  least  one 
of  these  fortunate  shrines.  When  people  were  ill  or  were 
in  danger,  they  often  vowed  to  make  a  pilgrimage  if 
they  were  healed  of  their  illness  or  were  rescued  from 
their  peril.  Many  went  in  the  hope  that  by  praying 
before  a  certain  shrine  they  would  be  cured  of  some 
disease  for  which  the  doctors  had  not  been  able  to  find 

123 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

a  remedy.  Some  were  sent  by  their  confessors  as  pen- 
ance for  their  sins;  and  in  such  cases  it  was  believed  to 
be  praiseworthy  to  make  the  journey  as  uncomfortable  as 
possible.  Sometimes  a  penitent  was  ordered  to  go  bare- 
footed or  wear  an  iron  ring  on  his  arm,  or  even 
to  carry  a  heavy  iron  chain.  There  is  an  old 
story  that  two  men  were  once  com- 
manded by  their  confessor  to  walk 
with  peas  in  their  shoes.  One  of  them 
hobbled  along  the  way  in  great  dis- 
comfort ;  but  the  other  strode 
along  easily,  for  he  had  been 
thoughtful  enough  to  boil 
his  peas  before  starting. 

The  ideal  pilgrim  was  supposed  to 
wear  a  rough  gray  cloak  and  a  round 
felt  hat,  to  sling  a  scrip,  or  bag,  for 
bread,  over  his  shoulder,  to  carry  a 
long  staff  with  a  water  bottle  hanging 
from  it,  and  to  set  out  on  foot,  beg- 
ging his  bread  by  the  way;  but  there 
were  as  many  kinds  of  pilgrims  as  of  folk,  and  as  time 
passed,  fewer  and  fewer  of  them  troubled  themselves  to 
wear  the  gray  cloak  or  even  to  beg  their  bread  if  they 

124 


A    PILGRIM 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

could  afford  to  buy  it.  In  Chaucer's  Canterbury  Tales 
the  author  describes  a  large  company  of  pilgrims,  but 
not  one  of  them  carried  even  scrip  or  staff.  A  knight, 
who  was  one  of  their  number,  had  just  returned  from  a 


CANTERBURY    PILGRIMS 


voyage,  and  he  started  just  as  he  was,  in  a  fustian  gipon, 
stained  by  his  coat  of  mail.  His  son,  a  merry  young 
squire,  wore  a  sort  of  short  gown  with  long,  wide  sleeves. 
A  doctor  was  gorgeous  in  a  robe  of  bright  blue  and  red 
lined  with  silk.  A  woman  from  the  town  of  Bath  wore 

125 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

a  sort  of  riding  mantle  fastened  about  her  waist,  and  a 
hat  "  as  broad  as  is  a  buckler  or  a  shield/' 

Good  folk  who  were  entirely  sincere  in  wishing  to 
make  a  pilgrimage  in  order  to  beg  the  aid  of  some 
kindly  saint  saw  no  harm  in  making  their  journey 
agreeable.  A  company  of  pilgrims  often  hired  a  few 
singers  and  bagpipe  players  to  go  with  them  and  en- 
liven the  way.  In  the  Canterbury  Tales,  the  worthy  land- 
lord says,  "  There  is  neither  comfort  nor  pleasure  in 
riding  along  as  silent  as  a  stone ";  and  he  suggests  that 
each  one  of  the  travelers  shall  tell  two  stories  going  to 
Canterbury,  and  two  returning.  Then,  when  they  have 
come  back  to  the  inn,  he  who  has  told  the  best  tale 
shall  have  a  supper  at  the  expense  of  the  others.  These 
people  had  no  peas  in  their  shoes,  or  if  they  had,  they 
did  not  mind,  for  they  ambled  along  comfortably  on 
horseback;  and  when  night  had  come,  they  drew  rein 
at  the  Tabard  Inn,  where  they  were  sure  of  good  wine 
and  the  best  of  food. 

When  pilgrims  had  come  to  their  journey's  end,  some 
went  straight  to  their  prayers;  others  wandered  about  the 
church  curiously.  At  Canterbury  there  was  much  to  see. 
Among  other  treasures  there  was  the  point  of  the  sword 
that  had  been  thrust  into  the  brain  of  the  martyr  Thomas 

126 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

a  Becket,  and  there  was  his  very  skull,  all  covered  with 
silver  save  the  forehead.  The  devout  kissed  the  sacred 
rust  of  the  sword  and  pressed  their  lips  reverently  to  the 
skull.  They  gazed  upon  the  hair  shirt  which  the  arch- 
bishop had  worn  and  the  scourge  with  which  he  had  so 
often  beaten  himself  for  his  sins.  There  were  bones  of 
lesser  saints,  there  were  silken  vestments  stiff  with  elab- 
orate embroidery,  and  there  were  superb  jewels  and  gold 
and  silver  ornaments  for  the  shrine  that  had  been  pre- 
sented by  earnest  worshipers.  It  is  said  that  at  the  prin- 
cipal altar  in  the  Canterbury  cathedral  only  a  few  pence 
were  left  in  the  course  of  a  whole  year;  but  that  at  the 
shrine  of  Thomas  a  Becket  gifts  were  made  in  the 
same  time  amounting  to  nearly  one  thousand  pounds, 
a  sum  that  would  buy  much  more  then  than  it  will 
to-day. 

One  of  the  greatest  treasures  of  the  cathedral  at  Can- 
terbury was  a  flask  of  blood,  said  to  be  that  of  a  Becket. 
It  was  believed  that  if  a  sick  person  was  permitted  to 
taste  a  cup  of  water  with  which  a  drop  of  this  blood 
had  been  mixed,  he  would  be  cured  of  whatever  disease 
he  might  have.  It  is  no  wonder  that  thousands  flocked 
to  Canterbury.  Sometimes  one  hundred  thousand  were 
in  the  place  at  the  same  time.  An  enterprising  young 

127 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

man  set  to  work  to  make  ampullae,  or  tiny  flasks  of  lead 
and  pewter,  in  which  pilgrims  might  carry  home  a  few 
drops  of  the  wonder-working  water  to  heal  any  of  their 
friends  who  were  suffering.  These  ampullae  had  little 

ears  pierced  with  holes  for 
cords.  They  were  some- 
times hung  about  the  neck 
and  sometimes  sewn  on  the 
cap  or  cloak  or  on  the  tunic 
over  the  heart.  Other  sou- 
venirs could  be  purchased. 
One  was  a  silver  or  pew- 
ter head  of  Saint  Thomas. 
Little  bells  were  also  for 
sale,  called  Canterbury 
bells,  a  name  that  has  been 

given  to  a  blue  bell-flower  of  Canterbury  which  grows 
commonly  in  our  gardens. 

Every  shrine  had  its  special  token.  Pilgrims  who  had 
been  to  Rome  might  wear  badges  representing  two  keys 
crossed,  or  a  veronica,  that  is,  a  representation  of  the 
face  of  Christ  on  a  handkerchief;  those  who  had  visited 
Santiago  da  Campostella  in  Spain  wore  scallop  shells  in 
honor  of  a  miracle  said  to  have  been  wrought  on  the 

128 


AMPULLA 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

seashore  by  the  body  of  Saint  James.  Sir  Walter  Raleigh 

wrote :  — 

Give  me  my  scallop  shell  of  quiet, 

My  staff  of  faith  to  walk  upon, 
My  scrip  of  joy,  immortal  diet, 

My  bottle  of  salvation, 
My  gown  of  glory,  hope's  true  gage ; 
And  thus  I  '11  take  my  pilgrimage. 

The  scallop  shells  and  other  badges  were  highly  valued 
by  their  owners  as  proofs  that  they  had  really  made  the 
various  pilgrimages.  Of  course  a  large  amount  of  money 
was  gained  by  their  sale,  and  the  right  to  manufacture 
them  was  very  valuable.  This  privilege  was  given  to 
certain  families  or  to  a  bishop  or  to  some  convent. 

The  people  who  went  on  pilgrimage  were  as  unlike 
as  people  of  to-day,  and  while  many  went  with  most 
honest  devotion  and  often  with  loss  and  trouble  to  them- 
selves, others  went  because  they  enjoyed  new  scenes  and 
the  adventures  of  the  way.  Chaucer  laughs  slyly  at  these 
last  and  says  that  when  April  has  come,  when  the  gentle 
breezes  blow,  when  twigs  are  green  and  little  birds  sing 
through  the  night,  then  it  is  that  folk  long  to  go  on  pil- 
grimage. They  could  hardly  be  blamed,  for  such  a 
pilgrimage  as  that  to  Canterbury  was  certainly  a  pleasant 
little  excursion.  The  road  from  London  was  known  as 

129 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

the  "Pilgrim's  Road/'  At  Walsingham  there  was  a 
monastery  whose  chapel  contained  a  famous  statue  of 
the  Virgin  Mary,  and  the  road  thither  was  called  the 
"Palmer's  Way,"  and  the  "Walsingham  Green  Way." 
A  common  name  in  England  for  the  Milky  Way 
was  the  "  Walsingham  Way." 

On  the  Continent  there  was  a  shrine  in  almost  every 
province.  The  favorite  one  in  France  was  on  the  wild, 
jagged  rock  of  Mont  Saint  Michel  in  Normandy.  This 
was  sacred  to  the  archangel  Michael.  At  Kiev  in  Russia 
rested  the  bones  of  many  martyrs,  and  every  year  thou- 
sands came  to  gaze  reverently  upon  them  and  offer  up 
fervent  prayers.  Treves  in  Prussia  rejoiced  in  the  posses- 
sion of  a  garment  said  to  be  the  seamless  coat  worn  by 
the  Saviour.  Throngs  of  people  made  long  journeys  to 
visit  these  places,  and  it  was  a  common  saying  that  the 
city  which  contained  a  valuable  relic  consisted  mainly  of 
churches  and  inns. 

There  were  sham  pilgrims  as  well  as  real  ones.  It  was 
regarded  as  a  worthy  act  to  aid  a  pilgrim  by  giving  him 
food  and  lodging,  and  some  of  the  gilds,  or  associations 
of  tradesmen,  maintained  lodging-houses  on  purpose  for 
poor  pilgrims.  This  was  an  accommodation,  but  not  en- 
tirely a  charity ;  for  the  tradesmen  expected  to  be  well 

130 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

paid  in  the  benefit  that  they  would  receive  from  the 
prayers  of  their  guests.  People  of  a  wandering  turn  of 
mind  or  those  who  were  too  lazy  to  work  for  their  bread 
found  the  liberality  shown  to  pilgrims  a  vast  convenience. 
They  had  only  to  choose  a  way  leading  to  some  popular 
shrine,  and  then  they  could  roam  on,  comfortably  cer- 
tain of  bed  and  board  without  money  or  labor.  It  was 
easy  for  one  who  was  weary  of  his  work  or  his  home 
village  to  become  a  sort  of  perpetual  pilgrim;  that  is,  it 
was  easy  until  so  many  had  learned  the  trick  that  laws 
were  made  against  this  vagrancy,  and  unless  a  person 
could  prove  that  he  was  a  real  pilgrim,  he  was  in  danger 
of  being  shut  up  in  prison  as  a  real  vagabond. 

Of  course  the  most  advantageous  pilgrimage  of  all  was 
that  to  the  Holy  Land.  This  was  counted  so  meritorious 
a  deed  that  he  who  aided  any  one  in  accomplishing  it 
was  looked  upon  as  especially  sure  of  a  blessing ;  while 
he  who  hindered  such  a  pilgrim  might  expect  neither 
happiness  nor  prosperity.  Many  of  the  gilds  had  the  law 
that  when  one  of  its  members  was  setting  out  on  pilgrim- 
age, the  others,  both  men  and  women,  must  go  a  little 
way  with  him,  and  in  saying  good-bye  each  must  present 
him  with  a  piece  of  money.  He  paid  no  dues  to  the  gild 
while  he  was  away  ;  for  the  members  were  supposed  to 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

share  in  the  merits  of  his  journey.  On  all  the  principal 
roads  leading  to  holy  places  there  were  rest  stations, 
sometimes  built  and  supported  by  freewill  offerings  and 
sometimes  by  regular  taxes.  Here  the  pilgrim  was  al- 
ways entitled  to  a  night's  shelter.  Convents  were  fre- 
quent, and  at  any  one  of  them  he  was  welcome  to  fire, 
water,  and  lodging,  and  even  food  if  this  was  needed. 
In  many  places  he  had  no  tolls  to  pay,  and  whoever  did 
him  an  injury  was  excommunicated,  or  forbidden  the 
benefits  of  the  Church. 

Before  a  person  started  on  a  long  pilgrimage,  he  con- 
fessed his  sins  and  went  to  a  special  service.  Psalms 
were  sung  and  prayers  were  offered  that  he  might  re- 
turn in  safety.  Then,  just  as  the  sword  of  the  young 
knight  was  blessed,  so  the  priest  now  pronounced  the 
blessing  of  the  Church  upon  the  pilgrim's  staff  and 
scrip.  Mass  was  said,  a  cross  of  cloth  was  sewn  on  his 
shoulder,  and  he  started  on  a  journey  that  would  sepa- 
rate him  from  his  friends  for  months  and  perhaps  years. 
It  might  be  that  he  had  no  idea  of  returning,  for  he 
who  spent  his  last  years  in  Jerusalem  and  there  met  his 
death  was  regarded  as  being  the  most  blessed  of  man- 
kind. 

The  common  route  from  England  to  Palestine  lay 

132 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

through  France  to  Lombardy  and  Venice,  thence  to  Cy- 
prus, Jaffa,  and  Jerusalem.  Sometimes  it  led  to  Egypt.  So 
many  thousand  pilgrims  were  constantly  traversing  these 
roads  that  a  person  who  started  alone  soon  found  compan- 
ionship and  the  safety  that  a  large  company  would  afford. 
Prominent  men  usually  carried  letters  from  their  king, 
declaring  that  they  were  pilgrims  and  commending  them 
to  the  protection  of  the  rulers  through  whose  lands  they 
would  pass.  Sometimes  a  band  of  pilgrims  was  almost 
large  enough  for  an  army.  In  the  eleventh  century  a  great 
company,  seven  thousand  strong,  set  out  from  Germany 
and  Normandy  for  the  Holy  Land.  Many  of  them  were 
priests  or  bishops ;  but  their  holy  orders  did  not  save  them, 
for  Arab  robbers  came  down  upon  them  and  carried  away 
a  large  amount  of  their  money,  and  forced  them  to  fight 
for  their  lives.  When  those  who  escaped  reached  Jeru- 
salem, the  patriarch,  or  head  of  the  Church  in  that  city, 
came  out  with  the  Christians  of  the  place  to  bid  them 
welcome.  They  were  escorted  with  clanging  of  cymbals 
and  flashing  of  lights  to  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  in  which 
Jesus  was  said  to  have  lain.  These  dwellers  in  Jerusalem 
pointed  out  the  various  places  of  interest,  and  were  as  de- 
finite in  their  information  as  if  they  had  known  anything 
about  the  matter.  The  pilgrims  were  eager  to  bathe  in 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

the  river  Jordan,  and,  indeed,  to  go  wherever  the  feet  of 
the  Lord  had  trodden;  but  the  Arabs  were  all  about  Jeru- 
salem, and  he  who  wandered  far  from  the  city  was  in 
danger  of  losing  his  money  and  perhaps  his  life.  After 
going  about  as  much  as  they  dared,  they  set  out  for  their 
homes,  stopping  at  Rome  on  their  way. 

Many  pilgrims  preserved  with  the  utmost  care  the 
shirts  which  they  wore  at  their  entrance  into  Jerusalem 
to  be  used  as  their  shrouds ;  for  thus  they  would  make 
sure  of  an  easy  entrance  into  heaven.  They  did  not  for- 
get to  carry  home  some  of  the  dust  of  the  sacred  coun- 
try ;  for  it  was  believed  that  whoever  possessed  a  grain 
of  it  could  never  be  harmed  by  fiends  or  demons.  It  was 
the  custom  for  every  pilgrim  to  bring  back  also  a  palm ; 
and  when  he  had  come  to  his  own  village,  this  was  put 
up  over  the  altar  of  his  church  to  show  that  he  had  made 
the  great  pilgrimage.  It  was  from  this  custom  that  pil- 
grims to  Jerusalem  were  called  palmers  ;  but  as  time 
passed,  the  name  was  often  given  to  any  pilgrim,  even 
though  he  was  making  only  a  few  days'  journey  to  some 
shrine  near  his  home. 

Pilgrims  sometimes  came  back  with  heavier  purses 
than  they  had  carried  with  them  ;  for  some  of  them  were 
also  merchants,  and  the  productions  of  Asia  were  brought 

134 


135 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

by  caravans  to  the  eastern  shores  of  the  Mediterranean 
Sea.  There  these  merchants  would  buy  them,  and  on 
their  homeward  journey  they  would  dispose  of  them  at 
a  most  excellent  profit.  Another  advantage  of  pilgrimage 
was  that  the  returning  traveler  had  enough  stories  of 
strange  sights  and  adventures  to  last  him  all  the  rest  of  his 
life.  In  those  days  when  neither  magazines,  novels,  nor 
daily  papers  had  ever  been  dreamed  of,  even  the  prosiest 
of  these  story  tellers  must  have  been  a  welcome  guest 
at  any  castle  on  his  way. 

The  pilgrim  often  had,  however,  many  stories  of  cruelty 
and  persecution  to  narrate.  In  the  seventh  century  the 
followers  of  Mohammed  who  captured  Jerusalem  had 
agreed  that  Christians  might  be  permitted  to  live  in  the 
city  provided  they  paid  a  tax  of  two  gold  pieces  every 
year,  wore  a  dress  different  from  that  of  the  Moham- 
medans, and  did  not  put  the  cross  on  the  outside  of  their 
buildings.  Moreover,  they  must  always  rise  if  a  Moham- 
medan appeared  among  them.  During  thefollowing  four 
hundred  years,  there  were  no  great  changes  in  the  laws, 
but  there  were  great  differences  in  the  characters  of  the 
Mohammedan  rulers.  Some  were  cruel,  while  others 
were  kind ;  and  the  condition  of  the  Christians  in  Jeru- 
salem was  "as  uncertain  as  April  weather/'  said  one  of 

136 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

the  old  writers.  The  best  of  these  rulers  was  the  famous 
Haroun  al  Raschid,  the  "caliph"  of  the  "Arabian 
Nights."  At  length,  however,  the  Holy  City  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  barbarous  Seljukian  Turks.  They,  too, 
were  Mohammedans,  and  they  hated  the  Christians ;  and 
now,  when  pilgrims  returned  to  France  and  Germany 
and  England,  they  had  terrible  tales  to  tell  of  how  the 
Christians  were  treated.  "  The  Christian  churches  are 
profaned,"  they  said,  "and  the  priests  are  thrown  into 
wretched  dungeons.  If  a  pilgrim  shows  any  signs  of  hav- 
ing money,  he  is  seized  and  robbed.  If  he  is  apparently 
a  poor  man,  he  fares  even  worse,  for  the  Turks  declare 
that  no  one  would  set  out  on  such  a  journey  without 
money,  and  they  either  kill  him  outright  or  torture  him 
to  make  him  give  it  up." 

Among  the  pilgrims  was  a  monk  called  Peter  the 
Hermit.  He  grew  more  and  more  indignant  as  he  thought 
of  the  sufferings  of  the  Christians,  and  of  the  insults  of- 
fered by  the  Turks  to  the  holy  places.  He  prayed  and 
fasted  and  finally  became  convinced  that  God  had  given 
to  him  the  special  work  of  recovering  the  Holy  Land 
for  the  Christians.  He  told  what  he  had  seen  to  the 
Pope,  Urban  II.  The  Pope  wept  in  sympathy  and  de- 
clared that  the  time  had  come  for  all  Christians  to  unite 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  drive  the  Turks  from  Europe.  Peter  set  out  to  arouse 
the  people  of  France.  He  wore  a  coarse  woolen  shirt 
and  a  gray  mantle.  He  was  bareheaded  and  barefooted. 
He  rode  upon  a  mule  and  bore  a  huge  cross  in  his  arms. 
He  was  so  earnest  and  eloquent  that  no  one  could  hear 
him  without  being  moved.  People  treasured  up  the  very 
hairs  of  his  mule  as  precious  legacies  for  their  children. 
They  loaded  him  down  with  gifts,  but  he  divided  these 
among  the  poor.  He  seemed  to  have  no  thought  for 
himself,  but  only  for  the  freedom  of  the  Holy  City. 
"Repent!  Repent!"  he  cried.  "Remember  that,  how- 
ever wicked  you  may  have  been,  you  have  now  the 
chance  to  win  pardon  for  all  your  sins.  He  who  strikes 
a  blow  to  rescue  the  Holy  Sepulchre  from  the  pollution 
of  the  unbelievers  has  thrown  open  the  door  of  heaven 
for  himself." 

Into  the  midst  of  these  people,  already  aroused  to  a 
high  pitch  of  excitement  and  enthusiasm,  came  Pope 
Urban.  He  called  a  great  council  to  meet  at  Clermont 
in  France.  No  church  was  large  enough  to  hold  the 
thousands  that  came  together,  and  they  all  went  out 
upon  a  wide-spreading  plain.  A  high  scaffold  was  built, 
and  from  this  the  Pope  addressed  them.  He  bade  them 
cease  making  war  with  one  another  and  devote  all  their 

138 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

power  to  striving  against  the  Mohammedans.  "You  are 
sure  of  victory/'  he  said,  "for  the  Turks  are  cowards, 
while  you  are  valiant  and  strong.  If  you  are  slain,  you 
will  indeed  have  lost  your  bodies,  but  you  will  have  saved 


PETER    THE     HERMIT     HANDING    LETTER   FROM    SIMEON,    PATRIARCH    OF 
JERUSALEM,    TO    POPE    URBAN    II 

your  souls.  Do  not  refuse  for  love  of  your  families ;  for 
you  must  love  God  more  than  these.  Do  not  refuse  for 
love  of  home ;  for  all  the  world  is  the  Christian's  coun- 
try. Do  not  refuse  because  of  your  wealth ;  for  much 
richer  treasures  await  you.  Those  who  die  will  enter  the 
mansions  of  heaven.  Those  who  live  will  behold  the 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

sepulchre  of  our  Lord.  Fortunate  indeed  are  they  who 
may  enter  such  a  conflict  and  share  the  glorious  rewards 
that  are  set  before  them."  "God  wills  it!  God  wills 
it ! "  shouted  the  people.  They  wept,  they  smote  their 
breasts  in  sorrow  for  their  sins,  and  on  the  instant  many 
pressed  forward  to  beg  for  the  red  cross  that  was  to  be 
the  sign  of  their  having  entered  upon  the  holy  under- 
taking. The  Latin  word  for  cross  is  crux,  and  therefore 
the  expeditions  to  drive  the  Turks  from  the  Holy  Land 
were  called  crusades. 

The  Pope  had  forbidden  any  to  go  except  strong  men 
well  able  to  fight,  and  he  had  set  August  15,  1096,  as 
the  day  of  their  departure ;  but  the  eager  people  could 
not  think  of  waiting  so  long,  and  four  months  before 
that  date  two  bands  set  out  for  Palestine,  made  up  not 
only  of  strong  men,  but  of  old  and  infirm  men  and  even 
women  and  children.  One  band  was  led  by  a  gentleman 
of  Burgundy  called  Walter  the  Penniless,  one  by  Peter 
himself.  It  is  thought  that  there  were  several  hundred 
thousand  persons  on  the  march.  They  had  come  from 
throughout  Europe.  If  a  servant  declared  that  he  wished 
to  join  the  crusade,  no  master  dared  to  hold  him  back. 
"  God  wills  it !  "  said  the  debtor,  and  his  creditor  did  not 
attempt  to  prevent  him  from  going  or  even  to  make  him 

140 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

pay  his  debt.  "God  wills  it ! "  the  criminal  in  prison  cried, 
and  the  doors  of  his  dungeon  were  thrown  open  that 
he,  too,  might  join  the  army.  The  lord  of  a  manor  did 
not  venture  to  forbid  even  a  villein  to  put  on  the  cross, 
nor  did  the  bishop  venture  to  command  a  priest  or  monk 
to  remain  at  home.  Sometimes  whole  families  set  out  to- 
gether, sometimes  husbands  left  their  wives,  or  mothers 
their  children,  to  join  in  the  wild  rush  to  the  land  of 
the  unbelievers.  Vast  numbers  of  these  eager  people  went 
because  they  firmly  believed  they  were  following  the 
will  of  God ;  but  thieves  went  to  gain  chances  to  rob  and 
steal,  and  swarms  of  folk  went  because  they  were  greedy 
for  any  kind  of  change  and  excitement.  As  for  the 
knights,  their  business  was  fighting ;  and  here  was  an 
opportunity  to  fight,  not  for  the  prizes  of  the  tourna- 
ment, but  for  heaven  itself. 

This  strange  and  unwieldy  army  made  their  way  to  the 
East,  and  they  succeeded  in  capturing  Jerusalem.  Some 
one  must  be  chosen  to  rule  the  city,  and  the  crusaders 
favored  the  foremost  of  the  leaders,  Godfrey  of  Bouillon, 
duke  of  Lorraine.  It  is  said  that  some  of  them  asked 
Godfrey's  servants  what  was  their  master's  greatest  fault. 
The  answer  was  that  he  persisted  in  staying  so  long  in 
church  to  learn  the  meaning  of  every  image  and  picture 

141 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

that  the  dinner  was  often  spoiled.  In  spite  of  this  griev- 
ous imperfection,  he  was  chosen  ruler  of  Jerusalem.  He 
would  not  accept  the  title  of  king  and  wear  a  crown  of 
gold  in  the  very  place  where  Jesus  had  worn  a  crown 
of  thorns ;  and  therefore  the  title  of  "  Baron  and  defender 
of  the  Holy  Sepulchre"  was  given  to  him. 

This  was  the  first  of  the  crusades.  There  were  eight 
others,  for  after  about  one  hundred  years,  Jerusalem 
again  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Mohammedans.  Then 
Europe  was  indeed  aroused,  and  three  sovereigns,  Rich- 
ard the  Lionhearted  of  England,  Philip  II  of  France, 
and  Frederick  Barbarossa  of  Germany,  led  enormous 
armies  toward  the  East.  Frederick  was  drowned  on  the 
way ;  but  the  others  pushed  on  to  Palestine.  Battles 
were  lost  and  battles  were  won.  The  kings  quarreled 
and  Philip  and  his  soldiers  went  home.  Richard  had 
not  men  enough  to  capture  Jerusalem,  and  he,  too,  left 
the  country,  though  not  until  he  had  shown  such  skill 
and  valor  in  warfare  that  even  to  this  day  his  prowess  is 
not  forgotten  in  the  East. 

People  had  felt  so  sure  that  the  crusade  of  the  three 
sovereigns  would  succeed  that  they  hardly  knew  how  to 
account  for  its  failure.  "  It  must  be  that  the  crusaders 
had  committed  many  sins  of  which  they  had  not  re- 

142 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

pented,"  thought  some;  and  gradually  the  belief  spread 
that  only  those  who   were  free  from  sin  and  pure  in 


GODFREY    OF    BOUILLON 

heart  could  ever  win  the  home-land  of  the  Saviour.    A 
French  shepherd  boy  named  Stephen  went  from  place 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  place  in  France  declaring  that  Jesus  had  commanded 
him  to  lead  a  company  of  children  to  the  Holy  Land 
to  rescue  the  sepulchre  of  Jesus  from  the  unbelievers. 
Throughout  France  he  sang:  — 

Jesus,  Lord,  repair  our  loss ; 
Restore  to  us  the  holy  cross. 

Thousands  of  children  joined  him.  Rich  and  poor 
broke  away  from  their  homes  and  marched  after  him 
crying,  "God  wills  it!  God  wills  it!"  "No  bolts,  no 
bars,  no  fear  of  fathers  or  love  of  mothers  could  hold 
them  back";  and,  moreover,  the  fathers  and  mothers 
often  hardly  dared  to  hold  them  back,  lest  in  so  doing 
they  should  be  opposing  God.  In  Germany,  another  boy 
preacher  named  Nicholas  aroused  the  German  children 
in  the  same  way;  and  they  all  set  out  for  the  Holy  Land. 
Longfellow  says  of  their  departure  from  Cologne :  — 

From  the  gates,  that  summer  day, 
Clad  in  robes  of  hodden  gray, 
With  the  red  cross  on  the  breast, 
Azure-eyed  and  golden-haired, 
Forth  the  young  crusaders  fared ; 
While  above  the  band  devoted 
Consecrated  banners  floated, 
Fluttered  many  a  flag  and  streamer, 
And  the  cross  o'er  all  the  rest ! 

144 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

Singing  lowly,  meekly,  slowly, 
"  Give  us,  give  us  back  the  holy 
Sepulchre  of  the  Redeemer  !  " 


THE  CHILDREN'S  CRUSADE 

They  had  neither  weapons  nor  any  thought  of  using 
them.  They  expected  the  waters  of  the  sea  to  divide 
that  they  might  pass  over  dryshod  ;  and  they  supposed 
that  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  would  fall  at  their  coming 
and  that  the  unbelievers  would  yield  to  them  without 
striking  a  blow.  But  the  plains  were  hot  and  the 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

mountains  were  cold.  Sometimes  they  could  not  get 
food.  Longfellow  says :  — 

Ah !  what  master  hand  shall  paint 
How  they  journeyed  on  their  way, 
How  the  days  grew  long  and  dreary, 
How  their  little  feet  grew  weary, 
How  their  little  hearts  grew  faint ! 

Many  were  stolen  and  sold  as  slaves.  Many  were  lost  in 
that  strange  and  bewildering  journey.  Thousands  sick- 
ened and  died.  A  very  few,  after  long  months  of  suf- 
fering, found  their  way  back  to  their  homes. 

There  were  in  all  nine  crusades  between  the  latter 
part  of  the  eleventh  century  and  that  of  the  thirteenth. 
The  bloodshed  and  suffering  came  to  nothing  so  far  as 
getting  possession  of  the  Holy  Land  was  concerned ;  for 
at  the  end  of  the  last  expedition  it  was  left  in  the  hands 
of  the  Mohammedans,  and  there  it  has  remained  from 
that  day  to  this.  The  crusades  did  not  drive  the  unbe- 
lievers from  Palestine,  but  they  did  make  vast  changes 
in  Europe.  In  the  first  place,  an  enormous  amount  of 
money  was  needed  to  pay  expenses.  If  the  lord  of  a 
manor  wished  to  go  on  a  crusade,  he  would  often  allow 
some  of  his  villeins  to  pay  dues  in  money  instead  of  in 
work ;  and  this  tended  to  break  up  the  manor  system. 

146 


Pilgrimages  and  Crusades 

A  sovereign  who  needed  money  for  a  crusade  was  usu- 
ally willing  to  grant  to  some  of  his  cities  many  privi- 
leges of  self-government  if  they  would  pay  him  a  good 
round  sum  for  this  freedom.  Again,  the  most  turbulent 
folk  and  the  most  eager  fighters  were  sure  to  seize  the 
opportunity  to  join  these  expeditions,  and  thus  make 
sure  of  plenty  of  fighting  and  excitement ;  and  this  left 
the  home-lands  more  quiet  and  peaceful.  Another  great 
gain  was  that  these  expeditions  strengthened  the  Latin 
power  in  Constantinople,  and  thus  prevented  the  Mo- 
hammedans from  sweeping  over  central  Europe.  More- 
over, the  crusaders  became  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
many  things  from  the  East,  such  as  spices  and  silks, 
which  they  had  regarded  as  luxuries  when  at  home  or 
had  perhaps  seldom  seen  at  all.  Numbers  of  vessels  were 
built  to  carry  the  thousands  of  men  to  Palestine,  and  on 
the  return  voyage  their  holds  were  filled  with  these  eastern 
productions.  So  it  was  that  both  shipbuilding  and  com- 
merce were  greatly  increased.  People  learned  not  only 
to  use  new  things,  but  to  think  new  thoughts.  They 
learned  of  lands  previously  unknown  to  them,  of  strange 
peoples  and  customs.  They  were  eager  listeners  to  sto- 
ries of  the  crusades,  and  soon  these  stories,  together  with 
poems  and  histories,  were  written  in  the  languages  of 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

the  different  countries  of  Europe.  All  these  new  ideas 
were  most  interesting  to  the  good  folk  of  the  time ;  but 
there  was  one  in  particular  that  was  not  only  interesting 
but  exceedingly  surprising  to  them.  The  knight  was 
the  ideal  man  of  the  age,  and  Richard  the  Lionhearted 
was  the  ideal  knight.  The  Mohammedan  was  despised 
by  every  one.  But,  behold,  it  had  been  seen  that  Rich- 
ard's Mohammedan  enemy  Saladin  was  as  brave  and  fear- 
less, as  courteous  and  generous  as  any  hero  of  chivalry 
could  ever  be.  The  crusaders  and  those  who  listened  to 
their  stories  did  not  become  devoted  admirers  of  their 
Mohammedan  foes,  but  many  of  them  did  begin  to 
comprehend  that  even  if  a  man  was  of  different  race, 
different  customs,  and  different  faith,  he  was  "  a  man 
for  a'  that "  ;  and  this  was  perhaps  the  greatest  gain  of 
all. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

MILITARY  ORDERS,  MONKS,  AND  MONASTERIES 

AMONG  those  who  wished  most  earnestly  to  make  the 
way  of  the  pilgrims  a  little  easier  were  some  merchants 
of  Amalfi  in  Italy.  A  number  of  years  before  the  first 
crusade,  they  came  together  to  discuss  how  they  could 
be  most  helpful  to  the  wayfarers.  They  concluded  that 
those  who  were  strong  and  well  and  rich  were  in  no 
special  need  of  their  aid.  "  It  is  the  sick  and  the  poor 
whom  we  will  care  for," -they  declared,  and  they  de- 
cided to  build  a  hospital  in  Jerusalem.  The  caliph  of 
Egypt  gave  them  permission,  and  they  built  two  hospitals, 
one  for  men  and  one  for  women.  Here  the  sick  were 
cared  for  and  the  poor  were  given  shelter  and  food. 

When  these  grateful  pilgrims  left  Jerusalem  and  re- 
turned to  their  homes,  they  told  people  about  the  new 
hospitals.  Those  who  were  able  sent  gifts ;  and  this  work 
of  the  merchants  was  plainly  so  sensible  and  helpful  an 
undertaking  that  contributions  from  all  parts  of  Europe, 
especially  from  Italy,  were  showered  upon  it,  and  valu- 
able gifts  of  land  in  different  countries  were  made  to  it. 

149 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Many  pilgrims,  after  reaching  Jerusalem  and  seeing  what 
good  the  hospitals  were  doing,  resolved  to  remain  and 
help  in  the  good  work.  Then  came  the  first  crusade. 
The  hospitals  cared  for  the  wounded  soldiers ;  and  some 
of  the  crusaders  decided  that  they,  too,  would  remain 
and  care  for  pilgrims.  It  became  necessary  to  have  a 
regular  organization.  This  was  formed,  and  the  name 
Hospitallers  of  the  Order  of  St.  John  was  chosen.  Who- 
ever wished  to  join  the  order  must  take  the  three  vows 
that  were  required  of  monks  and  nuns,  poverty,  chastity, 
and  obedience,  and  must  also  promise  to  devote  his  life  to 
the  service  of  the  poor  and  sick  in  Jerusalem.  Then  the 
patriarch  of  Jerusalem  put  upon  him  a  plain  black  robe 
having  a  white  cross  on  the  left  breast.  So  much  money 
and  land  came  into  the  hands  of  the  Hospitallers  that  they 
founded  one  house  after  another,  not  only  in  the  Holy 
Land,  but  scattered  through  the  countries  of  western 
Europe.  There  was  also  a  chapter  of  the  order  to  which 
women  might  belong,  and  large  numbers  joined  it. 

Many  of  the  members  of  the  order  had  made  long 
and  dangerous  journeys.  They  had  fought  in  savage  bat- 
tles, had  commanded  scores,  perhaps  hundreds  of  follow- 
ers ;  and  it  must  have  seemed  strange  enough  to  them  to 
have  rules  given  them  for  every  action  and  to  be  punished 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

like  little  children  if  they  were  not  obedient.  In  the 
English  houses,  if  two  knights  quarreled,  the  penalty  was 
to  eat  dinner  for  seven  days  sitting  on  the  ground.  Two 
days  of  the  seven,  they  were 
given  only  bread  and  water.  If 
one  struck  another,  he  must  do 
penance  for  forty  days,  usually 
by  fasting. 

In  1118,  a  superior  was 
chosen  who  was  deeply  inter- 
ested in  military  matters.  He 
proposed  that  the  knights 
should  not  only  care  for  those 
in  need,  but  should  also  take 
vows  to  fight  whenever  necessary 
in  defense  of  religion.  This 
was  going  back  to  their  old 
occupation,  and  the  Hospitallers  were  delighted.  They 
met  the  Turks  in  battle  again  and  again,  and  were,  in- 
deed, the  fiercest  defenders  of  the  kingdom  of  Jeru- 
salem. When  one  of  these  knights  went  into  warfare,  he 
wore  armor  of  course,  and  over  it  a  red  surcoat  with  a 
white  cross  on  the  breast,  and  a  red  mantle  with  a  white 
cross  on  the  shoulder. 


HOSPITALLER 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

After  the  Turks  captured  Jerusalem,  the  Hospitallers 
established  themselves  on  the  island  of  Cyprus,  then  on 
Rhodes,  and  there  they  put  up  some  large,  handsome 
buildings.  They  cared  for  the  sick,  they  fought  the 
Turks,  and  they  carried  pilgrims  from  Cyprus  to  the 
Holy  Land.  The  Turks  sent  out  vessels  to  prevent  this, 
and  there  were  some  furious  sea-fights. 

Next,  the  Hospitallers  became  military  engineers,  for 
they  got  possession  of  the  island  of  Malta  and  made  it 
one  of  the  strongest  fortifications  in  the  world.  Twice 
the  Turks  tried  their  best  to  capture  it,  but  did  not  suc- 
ceed. Later,  the  Hospitallers  patrolled  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sea  with  large  war-galleys,  trying  to  overcome 
the  pirates  of  northern  Africa.  The  order  is  still  in  ex- 
istence. It  has  been  called  "  the  last  relic  of  the  crusades 
and  of  chivalry/' 

The  Hospitallers  did  their  best  to  carry  pilgrims  safely 
to  the  coast  of  Palestine  and  to  care  for  them  after  they 
were  once  in  Jerusalem  ;  but  there  was  a  long  and 
dangerous  journey  to  be  made  from  the  coast  to  the  Holy 
City.  The  Turks  were  always  on  the  watch,  and  when 
they  caught  sight  of  a  company  of  pilgrims,  they  swooped 
down  upon  them  and  either  put  them  to  death  or  dragged 
them  away  to  a  life  of  slavery.  A  band  of  nine  valiant 

152 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

knights  in  Jerusalem  were  determined  that  this  should 
no  longer  be  endured ;  and  they  took  not  only  the  usual 
three  vows,  but  also  a  fourth,  which  bound  them  to  pro- 
tect pilgrims  on  this  jour- 
ney and  to  fight  for  the 
Holy  Sepulchre.  They  built 
a  house  for  themselves  close 
to  the  temple  in  Jerusalem, 
and  from  this  came  their 
name  of  Templars,  or  Knights 
of  the  Temple.  Their  num- 
bers increased.  Sons  of  the 
noblest  and  richest  families 
in  Europe  begged  to  become 
members  of  the  order. 
Princely  gifts  of  money  and 
lands  were  lavished  upon  it ; 
branches  were  formed,  and  houses,  many  of  them  as  well 
fortified  as  castles,  were  built  in  the  Holy  Land  and  also  in 
nearly  all  the  countries  of  Europe.  The  dress  of  the 
Templars  was  a  white  surcoat  with  a  red  cross  over  the 
breast,  and  a  long  white  mantle  with  a  red  cross  on  the 
shoulder. 

Two   hundred  years  passed,  and  the  Templars  had 


TEMPLAR 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

become  an  entirely  different  association.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  order  they  had  lived  upon  charity  and  had 
chosen  for  their  seal  a  representation  of  two  knights 
riding  upon  one  horse  to  indicate  poverty  ;  but  now  they 
had  become  enormously  wealthy.  Their  numbers  had 
increased  greatly  because  they  admitted  as  partial  mem- 
bers many  persons  who  simply  wished  to  make  sure  of 
protection.  More  than  one  king  became  jealous  of  their 
power,  and  was  exasperated  because  the  Church  forbade 
him  to  tax  them.  Stories  were  spread  by  their  enemies 
that  instead  of  fighting  with  the  Turks  they  were  ready 
to  make  any  sort  of  treaty  that  would  secure  their  own 
property  in  the  Holy  Land.  At  length  Philip  the  Fair 
of  France  accused  them  falsely  of  heresy  and  immoral- 
ity. Some  of  them  were  tortured  until  they  admitted  that 
the  charges  were  true,  and  in  France  fifty-four  were 
burned  at  the  stake.  Other  countries  followed  the  ex- 
ample of  France.  Part  of  their  property  was  given  to 
the  Hospitallers,  but  by  far  the  larger  part  of  it  went 
to  the  rulers  of  the  lands  in  which  it  was  situated. 

The  Hospitallers  and  the  Templars  were  the  principal 
military  orders  of  the  Middle  Ages;  but  there  were  also 
many  orders  which  were  purely  religious.  Most  of  the 
convents  already  in  existence  followed  the  rule  of  Saint 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

Benedict  of  Nursia,  who  died  in  the  sixth  century.  The 
monks  who  gathered  around  him  were  bidden  to  be  so 
poor  as  not  even  to  claim  as  their  own  the  gowns  that 
they  wore;  to  pray  seven  times  daily,  and  to  chant  the 
Psalms  of  David  every  week;  and 
also  to  labor  with  their  hands. 
"Laborare  est  orare,"  was  one  of 
Saint  Benedict's  favorite  mottoes. 
The  monks  were  required  to  spend 
seven  hours  a  day  in  manual  labor 
and  two  hours  inre^ding  and  study. 
While  they  jrfe,  they  must  listen 
to  the  reading  of  some  religious 
book.  They  wore  white  cassocks, 
and  over  them  flowing  gowns  with 
hoods.  The  long  gown  would  be 
in  the  way  in  working;  so,  when 
they  made  ready  for  work  or  for 
traveling,  they  wore  instead  a  short  black  tunic  without 
sleeves.  They  were  rarely  permitted  to  speak.  They 
fasted  often,  and  during  Lent  they  ate  nothing  until 
after  vespers.  They  had  to  promise  to  bear  reproof  and 
even  corporal  punishment  with  the  utmost  meekness. 
These  were  some  of  the  provisions  of  the  rule  of 


BENEDICTINE    MONK 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Saint  Benedict ;  but  as  one  century  after  another  passed, 
the  customs  of  both  monks  and  nuns  became  far  less 
strict.  As  an  act  of  piety,  children  were  often  led  in  by 
their  parents  or  even  taken  in  their  cradles  and  laid 
upon  the  altar  to  grow  up  in  the  convents  that  they 
might  become  monks  or  nuns.  These  children  were 
not  always  adapted  to  the  monastic  life,  and  when  they 
grew  up,  they  were  not  sorry  to  have  the  rules  less 
severe.  Then,  too,  the  monasteries  had  become  very 
rich.  It  is  true  that  no  individual  monk  or  nun  could 
hold  property ;  but  the  convent  as  a  whole  could  hold 
an  unlimited  amount.  Kings  and  nobles  had  made  them 
large  gifts.  A  Benedictine  convent  was  no  longer  the 
home  of  a  group  of  self-denying  monks  living  in  ob- 
scurity and  poverty;  it  was  the  abode  of  a  community 
so  rich  that  it  was  a  power  in  the  country  in  which  it 
was  situated.  The  rule  grew  more  and  more  lax.  Abuses 
sometimes  crept  in,  and  wrongdoing.  Some  earnest  folk 
did  not  feel  that  this  comfortable  fashion  of  living  was 
at  all  what  life  in  a  convent  should  be ;  they  were  eager 
to  go  back  to  the  simple,  severe  rule  of  Saint  Benedict. 
That  was  why  the  convent  of  Cluny  was  founded.  The 
Cluniacs  did  some  manual  work,  but  spent  most  of  their 
time  in  prayer  and  study.  They  taught,  and  in  their 

156 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

bookrooms  they  made  beautiful  copies  of  the  ancient 
manuscripts.  They  cared  for  the  poor,  and  they  did 
everything  they  could  to  increase  the  power  of  the 
Pope.  The  house  at  Cluny  was  only  the  beginning;  for 
soon  it  became  too  small  for  the  earnest  men  who 
wished  to  join  the  community;  and  one  house  after 
another  was  founded  to  make  a  place  for  them.  Cluny, 
however,  kept  the  control  in  its  own  hands.  The  other 
houses  were  governed  by  priors,  but  the  head  of  the 
house  at  Cluny  was  called  an  abbot.  He  often  visited 
the  other  convents  and  examined  them  to  make  sure 
that  they  were  carrying  out  the  Cluniac  rules  and  were 
not  introducing  any  new  customs.  These  houses  were 
known  as  the  Congregation  of  Cluny.  They  increased 
so  rapidly  that  in  two  hundred  years  after  the  parent 
house  was  founded  in  910,  there  were  fully  two  thou- 
sand of  them.  They  were  scattered  over  many  countries; 
but,  no  matter  where  they  stood,  every  one  was  under 
the  rule  of  the  abbot  of  Cluny. 

In  spite  of  the  two  thousand  Cluniac  convents,  there 
were  still  many  people  who  were  not  satisfied.  They 
felt  that  even  the  rule  of  Cluny  was  not  strict  enough. 
Those  who  are  in  earnest  in  wishing  to  lead  lives  of 
devotion,  they  said,  ought  to  be  entirely  free  from  all 

157 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

worldly  matters  and  give  themselves  up  wholly  to  pov- 
erty and  self-denial.  This  belief  was  most  strongly  held 
in  France,  and  during  the  last  quarter  of  the  eleventh 
century  several  other  orders  were  founded  to  carry  out 
the  idea.  The  first  of  these  was  the  order  of  Gram- 
mont,  which  was  founded  by  a  French  nobleman  named 
Stephen.  He  certainly  practiced  self-denial,  for  he  lived 
upon  nothing  but  bread  and  water.  Others  followed  his 
teachings,  and  in  time  the  order  was  formed.  Its  rule 
was  far  more  severe  than  that  of  Cluny.  Stephen  took 
special  pains  to  free  his  monks,  or  "  good  men,"  as  he 
preferred  they  should  be  called,  from  the  temptations 
of  wealth;  for  he  decreed  that,  no  matter  how  rich 
their  convent  might  become,  they  should  have  nothing 
to  do  with  the  management  of  the  property.  This  was 
all  to  be  in  the  hands  of  some  lay  brethren.  Unfortu- 
nately, the  lay  brethren  and  the  "  good  men "  did  not 
agree,  and  at  length  the  order  fell  to  pieces. 

The  Carthusian  Order  was  founded  a  few  years  after 
the  Order  of  Grammont  by  one  Bruno,  a  canon  of 
Cologne.  This  was  the  most  strict  of  all  the  orders. 
Bruno  chose  for  his  abode  a  wild  tract  of  land  in  south- 
eastern France.  There  he  and  six  others  built  a  chapel 
and  a  group  of  rude  huts.  These  finally  became  the 

158 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

Grande  Chartreuse.  He  and  his  six  companions  entered 
upon  a  life  of  the  utmost  rigor.  The  men  could  hardly 
be  called  companions,  for  each  had  his  own  little  cell,  or 
rather,  a  tiny  house,  and  in  this  he 
spent  his  life,  praying,  meditating, 
and  copying  manuscripts.  He  was 
seldom  permitted  to  speak,  and  in- 
deed, he  seldom  had  an  opportunity. 
Once  a  day  food  was  silently  passed 
in  at  his  window.  Three  times  a 
week  he  took  only  bread  and  water. 
Twice  a  week  vegetables  were  given 
him,  which  he  might  cook  for  him- 
self. On  Sundays  and  Thursdays  he 
was  allowed  to  eat  cheese  or  eggs, 
and  even  fish  if  any  had  been  given 
to  the  convent.  Meat  he  was  never 
permitted  to  taste.  On  Sundays  and  feast  days  he  had 
the  rare  indulgence  of  dining  with  the  other  monks, 
but  in  silence  of  course.  He  wore  constantly  a  shirt  of 
the  roughest  haircloth  and  over  it  a  white  cassock. 
Over  the  cassock  he  wore  a  scapulary,  that  is,  a  long 
piece  of  cloth,  hanging  down  in  front  and  behind  and 
joined  at  the  sides  by  a  band.  His  hood  was  white. 


CARTHUSIAN    MONK 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Many  Carthusian  houses  were  established,  especially 
in  France.  Each  of  these  was  known  as  a  Chartreuse  in 
honor  of  the  first  home  of  the  order.  In  England, 
"  Chartreuse  "  became  "  Charter-house." 


CELL    OF    A    MONK 


The  Carthusian  Order  still  exists  hardly  changed  at  all 
in  its  rule.  At  the  Grande  Chartreuse  of  to-day,  thirty- 
six  monks  have  each  a  tiny  apartment  of  four  rooms.  It 
opens  into  the  cloister,  and  a  garden  separates  it  from  its 
next  neighbor.  Beside  the  cloister  door  is  a  sliding  shut- 
ter through  which  food  is  silently  passed  in.  Whenever 
the  monk  is  in  need  of  anything,  he  writes  the  name  of 
the  article  on  a  bit  of  paper  and  lays  this  beside  the  slide. 

160 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

It  is  brought  him  in  silence.  No  one  enters  the  little 
abode  except  its  owner.  As  it  was  eight  hundred  years 
ago,  so  now  he  may  go  to  the  refectory  on  Sundays  and 
feast  days  and  eat  a  silent  meal  with  the  other  monks. 
Once  a  week  there  is  a  "  public  walk,"  that  is,  the  monks 
walk  together  and  are  permitted  to  talk.  On  other  days 
the  walk  of  the  monk  is  a  solitary  pacing  to  and  fro  on 
a  covered  way  adjoining  his  cell.  The  costume  is  still  a 
white  robe  and  cowl  of  wool,  a  white  leather  belt,  and 
a  white  woolen  cloak.  The  main  business  of  the  order  is 
prayer;  but  the  monks  have  a  valuable  library  and  they 
do  much  reading  and  studying.  They  maintain  houses  for 
the  ill  and  needy. 

It  was  not  many  years  after  the  founding  of  the  Car- 
thusian Order  that  the  whole  Christian  world  was  aroused 
by  hearing  of  the  sufferings  of  the  pilgrims  to  Jerusalem. 
Peter  the  Hermit  and  others  preached,  Pope  Urban  called 
the  famous  council  at  Clermont,  and  in  1095  the  first 
crusade  set  out.  But  many  remained  at  home  who  were 
just  as  earnest  as  the  crusaders  in  longing  to  do  some- 
thing for  the  salvation  of  their  souls.  Some  of  them  de- 
termined to  become  monks.  They  wished  to  live  as  sim- 
ply and  strictly  as  possible ;  but  there  was  no  order  that 
seemed  to  them  severe  enough.  Cluny  was  now  nearly 

161 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

two  hundred  years  old.  The  order  was  wealthy.  It  owned 
handsome  buildings,  broad-spreading  lands,  and  much 
treasure.  Its  churches  were  loaded  with  ornament.  The 
windows  were  of  the  richest  stained  glass.  The  chalices 
gleamed  and  glittered  with  jewels.  Such  surroundings 
seemed  to  the  people  who  were  seeking  so  eagerly  for 
simple  lives  to  be  entirely  too  luxurious  for  their  purpose. 
Of  course  the  next  step  was  the  founding  of  a  new  order. 

The  first  monastery  was  built 
at  Citeaux,  and  therefore  the 
monks  were  called  Cistercians. 
The  Cistercians  planned  to 
build  their  convents  as  far  from 
cities  as  possible.  The  houses 
were  to  be  absolutely  plain.  A 
single  turret  for  a  bell  was  al- 
lowed, but  no  other  towers. 
Within,  the  walls  were  to  be 
bare.  No  images  of  saints  were 
admitted,  and  even  the  crucifix 
must  be  of  wood.  The  candle- 
sticks of  the  altar  were  of  iron, 
the  vestments  of  the  priests  were  of  coarse  fustian.  There 
were  no  hours  of  study  for  the  Cistercians.  They  learned 

162 


CISTERCIAN    MONK 


VIEW    OF    CITEAUX 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

how  to  say  their  prayers,  and  that  was  enough.  Instead 
of  studying  or  reading,  they  spent  much  time  in  manual 
labor.  Their  food  was  rude  and  scanty,  and  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  year  they  ate  only  one  meal  a  day. 
Their  gowns  and  hoods  were  made  of  undyed  wool,  and 
therefore  they  were  often  called  the  "  white  monks/' 
Their  sleeves  hung  down  far  below  their  hands,  and  a 
company  of  these  monks,  sitting  with  crossed  arms,  an 
attitude  supposed  to  express  great  respect,  must  have  been 
an  amusing  sight.  The  Cistercians  were  successful  farm- 
ers. In  England  they  raised  immense  flocks  of  sheep, 
and  in  the  thirteenth  century  they  were  the  greatest  wool 
merchants  in  the  land.  They  had  also  large  iron  works; 
and  their  wealth  increased  until  they  became  as  rich  and 
powerful  as  the  Cluniacs. 

The  great  man  of  the  Cistercians  was  Saint  Bernard. 
He  was  so  zealous  that  he  found  the  rigorous  ways  of 
the  order  none  too  severe  for  him.  He  was  so  eloquent 
that  no  one  could  resist  him.  He  urged  the  emperor  of 
Germany  to  go  on  a  crusade ;  and  much  to  the  emperor's 
own  surprise,  he  found  himself  promising  to  go.  Saint 
Bernard  preached  to  a  group  of  students  that  it  was  better 
to  save  .their  souls  than  to  study  ;  and  straightway  a  score 
of  them  dropped  their  books  and  became  his  followers. 

164 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

These  four  orders  were  the  most  important  of  those 
founded  in  the  tenth  and  eleventh  centuries;  but  con- 
vents were  nothing  new,  and  there  were  orders  of  all 
varieties  for  both  monks  and  nuns.  Some  were  but  little 
less  strict  than  the  four  that  have  been  named  ;  in  others, 
the  monks  had  a  fine  time,  playing  chess,  keeping  birds 
and  dogs,  and  even  going  hunting.  Chaucer  describes  a 
monk  who  was  very  fond  of  hunting.  "And  when  he 
rode,"  says  the  poet  slyly,  "one  could  hear  his  bridle  jin- 
gling in  the  whistling  wind  as  clear  and  as  loud  as  the 
chapel  bell."  According  to  Chaucer,  this  same  monk 
liked  a  fat  swan  "  best  of  any  roast "  ;  and  certainly  some 
of  the  monks  did  not  stint  themselves  in  eating  and  drink- 
ing. It  is  said  that  the  monks  of  Winchester  once  com- 
plained to  Henry  II  "with  tears  in  their  eyes"  that  the 
bishop  had  insisted  upon  withdrawing  several  of  their 
dishes,  and  had  left  them  only  ten.  The  story  declares 
that  King  Henry  swore  at  them  roundly  and  said  that 
three  dishes  were  enough  for  him. 

In  rearing  the  buildings  of  a  convent,  there  was  little 
variety  in  the  general  plan.  The  centre  of  the  whole 
establishment  was  an  oblong  space  of  green  turf  with 
sometimes  a  fountain  and  shrubs.  This  was  called  the 
cloister  court.  Around  it  was  generally  a  covered  walk 

165 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

whose  roof  was  supported  by  beautifully  wrought  pillars 
of  stone.  Here  the  monks  walked  and  studied  and  taught 
their  pupils.  The  church  was  built  at  the  north  end  of 
the  court,  a  wise  plan  for  keeping  off  the  cold  north  winds. 
On  the  east  side  of  the  cloister  was  the  chapter-house,  or 
council  chamber.  Next  to  that  was  the  dormitory,  or 
general  sleeping  house.  On  the  south  side  was  the  refec- 
tory, or  dining  room.  Here  there  was  always  a  pulpit,  or 
reading  desk,  from  which  some  religious  book  was  read 
while  the  monks  ate  their  meals.  On  the  west  side  was 
the  office  of  the  cellarer,  whose  business  it  was  to  look 
after  food  and  drink.  Near  it  was  a  guest  house,  some- 
times richly  furnished  and 
decorated,  and  any  other 
buildings  that  might  be 
needed.  No  monastery  pos- 
sessed what  would  to-day 
be  called  a  library.  Print- 
ing was  not  invented.  Books 
were  written  by  hand  on 
expensive  vellum  or  parch- 
ment ;  and  a  collection  of 
four  or  five  hundred  would  have  been  looked  upon  with 
some  wonder.  There  was  almost  always  a  writing  room, 

1 66 


A    MONK    WRITING 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

however,  usually  over  the  chapter-house.  Here  the  monks 
copied  laboriously  with  pen  and  ink  the  books  used  in  the 
church  service  and  those  that  were  sold  to  outsiders.  The 


imcwrqtte  on  temp*  qnt 


aflte  Te  taptitole^ttneil  eft  Jnt 


tetnomtient' 
^atr  td  tot 
qtt^  il  fenn'ent  rrihrifo 


THE    BEGINNING    OF    A    CHAPTER 


capitals  at  the  beginnings  of  chapters  were  often  elaborately 
painted  with  gold  and  bright  colors  that  are  just  as  brilliant 
now  as  when  they  were  put  on.  Many  convents  carried  on 
schools,  and  the  schoolbooks  also  had  to  be  made.  The 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

journal  must  be  kept  up,  that  is,  the  account  of  what  was 
done  in  the  convent  from  day  to  day,  and  sometimes 
annals  of  what  was  happening  in  the  kingdom. 

A  monastery  did  not  run  itself.  It  was  not  only  a  place 
where  prayers  were  said  and  books  were  copied ;  it  was 
a  place  where  people  ate  and  drank  and  wore  out  shoes 
and  clothes,  cared  for  the  sick,  managed  a  school,  and 
entertained  as  if  it  were  a  great  hotel.  There  was  a  vast 
amount  of  work  to  be  done,  and  a  vast  amount  of  think- 
ing was  needed  to  manage  the  work  and  see  that  nothing 
was  left  at  loose  ends.  Wool  and  linen  for  clothing  were 
raised  on  convent  lands,  spun  and  woven,  cut  out  and 
made  on  the  spot.  Cattle  were  raised  and  the  skins  tanned 
for  shoes.  Vegetables  and  fruit  grew  in  the  convent  gar- 
dens ;  grain  was  grown  in  the  fields  of  the  establishment 
and  was  ground  in  the  convent  mill.  Grapes  were  grown 
for  wine,  and  bees  were  kept  for  honey.  There  were  car- 
penters, masons,  fishers,  hunters,  blacksmiths,  and  bakers. 
Guests  were  always  coming  and  going.  There  were  pil- 
grims, both  humble  and  of  rank,  minstrels,  merchants, 
jugglers,  pedlars,  nobles,  sometimes  even  a  king  and  his 
suite ;  and  all  were  to  be  looked  after  and  treated  accord- 
ing to  their  degree.  This  was  the  hospitality  that  was 
shown  to  Columbus  and  his  little  son  at  the  Spanish  con- 

168 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

vent  of  La  Rabida,  and  that  opened  the  way  for  his  voy- 
age to  the  New  World. 

All  these  different  departments  of  a  convent  must  be 
cared  for,  and  there  must  be  some  one  person  responsible 
for  each.  At  the  head  of  the  whole  establishment  was 
the  abbot ;  in  his  absence  his  place  was  filled  by  the  prior. 
The  care  of  money,  clothing,  and  keeping  the  accounts 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  chamberlain,  and  he  had  also  the 
responsibility  of  the  archives,  or  records  of  the  convent. 
The  librarian  had  charge  of  whatever  books  there  were 
and  also  of  the  copying  room.  The  gold  and  silver  chal- 
ices and  other  vessels  used  in  the  service  and  the  orna- 
ments of  the  altar  were  often  encrusted  with  costly 
jewels.  Then,  too,  there  were  relics  of  the  saints,  and 
if  these  could  cure  the  lame,  heal  the  sick,  and  open  the 
eyes  of  the  blind,  they  were  surely  of  much  greater  value 
than  all  the  gold  and  gems,  to  say  nothing  of  the  amount 
of  gifts  made  to  the  convent  by  the  grateful  people  who 
had  been  healed.  These  were  cared  for  and  guarded  by 
the  sacristan.  It  was  no  small  task  to  look  after  the  food 
and  drink  for  hundreds  of  people,  for  the  well  and  the 
ill,  for  monks,  for  young  novices,  who  were  trying  the 
life  before  taking  their  final  vows,  for  servants,  for  pupils 
of  the  school,  for  the  little  children  who  had  been  given 

169 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  the  convent.  This  was  the  work  of  the  cellarer.  But 
it  was  only  a  part  of  his  work,  for  he  must  always  be 
ready  for  guests  of  all  kinds  and  degrees.  Perhaps  these 
guests  were  only  a  little  band  of  the  humblest  pilgrims 
who  would  be  more  than  satisfied  with  the  simplest  fare; 
and  perhaps  they  were  a  noble  with  his  followers,  or  even 
a  prince  or  a  king.  Whoever  came,  whether  one  or  a 
large  company,  the  cellarer  must  always  be  ready  to  treat 
each  one  according  to  his  rank.  No  bill  was  presented. 
The  hospitality  was  a  free  gift  to  all ;  but  it  was  expected 
that  those  who  were  able  to  pay  would  make  a  gift  to 
their  entertainers.  Sometimes  these  guests  or  other  friends 
of  the  convent  presented  large  sums  of  money  or  even 
manors,  whose  income  was  to  be  given  to  the  poor.  Dis- 
tributing this  charity  was  enough  to  keep  one  man,  the 
almoner,  busy ;  for  the  poor  and  needy  never  failed  to 
flock  about  the  convent  gate.  Indeed,  only  part  of  this 
work  could  be  done  by  the  almoner;  and  if  any  of  the 
poor  folk  or  any  monks  were  ill,  they  had  to  be  given 
into  the  hands  of  the  infirmarius  for  care  and  treatment. 
These  were  only  a  few  of  the  offices.  There  was  a  ter- 
rier, who  had  special  care  of  the  guest  rooms;  a  porter 
who  guarded  the  gate  and  saw  to  it  that  no  one  entered 
who  had  not  a  right  to  be  admitted;  achantor,  who  took 

170 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

charge  of  the  choral  service  and  taught  the  monks  to  sing. 
There  was  a  master  of  the  novices  who  taught  them  to 
work  and  to  meditate  and  to  behave  themselves  properly 
in  all  respects.  He  even  cared  for  their  dress,  and  it  was 
his  business  to  get  from  the  chamberlain  the  cowls, 
gowns,  shoes,  bedding,  and  other  things  that  they  needed. 
In  every  large  convent,  each  division  of  the  work  and 
management  required  so  much  care  and  responsibility 
that  there  was  hardly  any  limit  to  the  number  of  offi- 
cials. 

The  accounts  of  the  convent  were  kept  most  minutely. 
There  were  no  "  sundries/'  Every  dish,  even  every  nail, 
must  be  accounted  for,  and  the  sheets  must  balance  to 
the  half  of  a  farthing.  Most  convents  were  the  "  lords  " 
of  manors,  sometimes  a  large  number  of  manors ;  and 
even  to  keep  the  accounts  of  these,  to  say  nothing  of  at- 
tending to  their  cultivation  and  the  sale  of  the  produce, 
must  have  been  an  enormous  amount  of  work. 

However  earnestly  a  monk  might  wish  to  withdraw 
himself  from  the  world,  it  was  impossible  for  a  large 
monastery  to  avoid  having  constant  dealings  with  out- 
siders. Besides  the  buying  and  selling  which  were  al- 
ways necessary,  a  town  frequently  grew  up  on  convent 
land,  as  has  been  said  before,  and  therefore  paid  taxes 

I.7I 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  the  convent.  But  as  the  town  grew  larger  and  more 
independent,  the  townsfolk  protested  against  these  taxes, 
while  the  convent  struggled  as  emphatically  to  collect 
them.  Sometimes  the  contest  came  to  a  real  hand  to  hand 
fight.  In  this  the  monks  were  not  helpless  by  any 
means,  for  an  abbot  who  controlled  a  number  of  man- 
ors could  often  call  out  several  hundred  men  to  take  up 
arms  for  him.  In  one  case  in  England  the  monks  stood 
by  their  ancient  right  of  grinding  the  townsfolk's  corn 
and  charging  them  a  good  price  for  so  doing.  The 
townsfolk,  on  the  other  hand,  declared  that  in  future 
they  should  grind  their  own  corn.  The  quarrel  grew, 
and  the  townsfolk  actually  besieged  the  convent  for 
more  than  ten  days  before  an  agreement  was  reached. 
There  were  also  quarrels  with  bishops  and  nobles,  which 
often  led  to  lawsuits,  if  not  to  blows  and  sieges.  The 
monks  took  the  stand  that  they  owed  obedience  to  the 
Pope  and  to  no  one  else.  But  a  convent  was  in  the  dio- 
cese of  some  bishop,  and  as  time  passed,  most  monks 
were  ordained.  Therefore  the  bishop  naturally  claimed 
some  control  over  them.  Such  disagreements  were 
sometimes  settled  by  the  archbishop,  but  oftener  they 
were  appealed  to  the  Pope.  It  was  excellent  policy  for 
monks  and  nobles  to  be  friendly;  but  they  watched 

172 


Military  Orders,  Monks,  Monasteries 

each  other  like  cats  and  dogs.  Nobles  who  knew  them- 
selves about  to  die  and  who  hoped  to  win  pardon  for 
their  sins  by  a  rather  belated  generosity  often  made  large 
gifts  to  convents.  Naturally,  the  monks  were  pleased 
and  the  heirs  of  the  nobles  were  not ;  and  often  it  was 
a  question  which  side  would  succeed  in  keeping  hold 
of  the  land  or  treasure. 

The  work  done  by  the  monasteries  of  the  Middle 
Ages  was  of  the  utmost  value.  In  agriculture  alone  it 
can  hardly  be  too  highly  estimated.  The  monks  were 
the  most  skillful  farmers  of  the  time.  They  usually  set- 
tled themselves  in  some  desolate  place.  They  cleared 
away  the  forests.  They  drained  the  swamps,  and  made 
the  waste  land  into  fruitful  fields  and  gardens.  They 
built  roads  and  bridges.  To  the  poor  and  oppressed  the 
convents  were  friends  and  helpers.  They  lessened  the 
burdens  of  the  villeins  on  their  own  estates,  and  by  their 
example  those  of  the  toilers  on  the  lands  of  the  nobles. 
They  carried  on  schools,  and  in  an  age  of  the  sword  and 
the  lance  they  maintained  interest  in  education.  They 
saved  classical  literature  and  much  history  of  manners 
and  customs,  as  well  as  records  of  the  events  of  their  own 
day.  Moreover,  however  wealthy  and  perhaps  luxuri- 
ous some  of  the  orders  may  have  become,  they  stood, 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

nevertheless,  before  the  greedy  sovereigns  and  the  law- 
less barons  as  reminders  that  they  had  been  founded  by 
men  to  whom  riches  and  comfort  were  nothing  in  com- 
parison with  lives  made  pleasing  to  God. 


CHAPTER    IX 

HERMITS,   FRIARS,   AND   MISSIONARIES 

WHEN  a  hermit  appears  in  a  romance,  he  is  generally 
described  as  an  old  man  with  picturesque  gray  beard 
and  hair,  and  either  a  long  gray  cloak  or  a  scanty  robe 
of  sackcloth.  He  has  had  wild  adventures  in  his  youth, 
has  perhaps  done  some  deeds  of  violence  to  which 
he- occasionally  refers  darkly;  but  now  he  keeps  lonely 
vigils,  he  flogs  himself  with  briers  and  wears  a  hair 
shirt  by  way  of  atoning  for  his  sins.  He  omits  most  of 
his  meals,  and  when  he  does  deign  to  eat,  his  food  con- 
sists of  a  dry  crust,  a  handful  of  cress,  and  a  cirp  of 
water.  Much  of  his  time  he  spends  in  counting  his 
beads.  He  cares  nothing  for  money  and  despises  com- 
forts. His  bed  is  the  damp  stone  of  his  cave.  His 
clothes  he  wears  until  they  are  ready  to  drop  from  him 
in  pieces.  His  cell  is  always  conveniently  near  the  spot 
where  some  one  has  just  been  attacked  by  thieves  and 
left  on  the  ground  as  dead.  He  lifts  the  insensible  suf- 
ferer to  his  shoulder,  bears  him  to  the  cave,  bathes  his 
forehead  with  cool  water  from  the  spring,  and  then  ap- 

175 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

plies  a  wonder-working  ointment,  given  him  perhaps  in 
his  youth  by  some  heathen  Saracen;  and,  presto,  in  a 
day  or  two  the  man  who  had  fallen  among  thieves  is 
completely  cured  and  either  goes  his  way  or  else  him- 
self becomes  a  dweller  in  a  cave  of  stone  with  a  menu 
of  cresses  and  water. 

Such  is  the  hermit  of  the  romances;  but  the  hermit 
of  the  Middle  Ages  was  quite  a  different  person.  Some- 
times, it  is  true,  he  made  for  himself  a  tiny  abode  deep 
in  the  forest  or  in  the  midst  of  some  lonely  desert,  and 
sometimes  he  dug  for  himself  a  den  in  the  side  of  a  hill 


A    HERMIT 

176 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

or  hewed  out  a  rough  cave  in  a  cliff.  Sometimes  his 
abode  was  merely  a  hut  of  wattle-work  or  a  sort  of 
booth  covered  with  branches ;  but  often  he  dwelt  in  a 
comfortable  little  cottage  of  wood  or  stone  on  a  high- 
way. Occasionally  several  hermits  grouped  themselves 
together,  each  having  his  own  cell,  or  rather  cottage, 
and  using  one  chapel.  The  hermit  dressed  much  like  the 
monks,  usually  in  a  robe  of  black  or  gray;  though  there 
is  at  least  one  old  picture  of  a  hermit  wearing  a  cheery 
little  red  cap.  He  was  generally  drawn  with  a  book,  a 
bell  to  ring  for  mass  and  to  drive  away  evil  spirits,  and  a 
staff. 

As  to  what  the  hermits  did  with  themselves  all  day 
long,  one  must  remember  that  there  were  almost  as 
many  kinds  of  hermits  as  there  are  of  people.  There  are 
stories  of  hermits  who  became  so  absorbed  in  prayer 
that  the  hours  passed  like  minutes;  of  one  who  was  able 
to  wear  the  same  cloak  for  many  years,  because  while 
he  was  praying,  his  friends  quietly  slipped  it  off,  mended 
it,  and  laid  it  upon  his  shoulders  again,  without  his  dis- 
covering its  absence.  There  were  hermits  who  made 
themselves  useful  by  taking  up  their  abode  near  some 
dangerous  fording  place  and  carrying  pilgrims  on  their 
shoulders  across  the  stream.  Such  is  the  hero  of  the 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

legend  of  Saint  Christopher,  to  whom  a  little  child  one 
day  appealed  to  be  borne  over  the  river.    The  strong 


ST.    CHRISTOPHER 


man  took  the  child  upon  his  shoulders  and  waded  into 
the  stream.    But  the  burden  grew  heavier  and  heavier, 

178 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

and  he  could  hardly  make  his  way  across  and  stagger 
up  the  opposite  bank.  "  Child,"  he  said,  "  thou  hast 
put  me  in  great  peril.  I  could  bear  no  heavier  burden." 
The  child  answered,  "  Marvel  not,  for  to-day  thou  hast 
borne  on  thy  shoulders  the  whole  world  and  the  weight 
of  its  sins." 

A  hermit  of  a  sociable  turn  of  mind  sometimes  built 
himself  a  hut  beside  a  bridge.  Bridges  were  trouble- 
some comforts  in  those  days.  They  were  supposed  to  be 
cared  for  by  the  landowners  within  whose  boundaries 
they  stood ;  and  the  lords  often  collected  toll  for  their 
use;  but  the  one  that  was  left  entirely  to  their  care 
would  have  been  rather  dangerous.  No  one  could  deny 
that  bridges  were  useful,  but  to  build  a  needed  bridge 
or  keep  one  in  repair  was  everybody's  business,  and 
therefore  it  was  nobody's  business.  So  it  came  to  pass 
that  building  a  bridge  or  caring  for  one  was  looked  upon 
as  being  as  much  of  a  religious  act  as  going  to  church. 
People  sometimes  built  a  bridge  by  way  of  doing  pen- 
ance for  their  sins ;  or  in  their  wills  they  left  money 
for  one  for  the  same  reason.  Some  of  the  gilds  took 
certain  roads  and  bridges  under  their  charge  as  a  reli- 
gious duty.  On  the  larger  bridges  chapels  were  some-r 
times  built.  It  did  not  seem  at  all  out  of  place,  then, 

179 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

for  a  hermit  to  establish  himself  beside  a  bridge  and 
claim  farthing  gifts  from  travelers  on  the  ground  that 
he  was  caring  for  it.  If  they  got  safely  over,  it  mattered 
little  to  them  whether  he  spent  all  the  money  in  repairs 
or  not.  They  rode  away  with  the  comfortable  feeling 
that  they  had  done  their  duty  and  it  had  not  cost  much ; 
and  the  hermit  was  reasonably  sure  of  farthings  enough 
for  his  needs. 

But  begging  at  bridges  was  not  the  hermit's  only 
means  of  gaining  a  livelihood.  The  mere  fact  that  a 
man  lived  in  a  certain  place  and  depended  upon  charity 
for  his  food  was  sufficient  to  induce  people  to  make  him 
gifts,  and  to  leave  him  money  in  their  wills.  Occasion- 
ally a  wealthy  man  built  a  hermitage  and  endowed  it 
just  as  one  to-day  might  endow  a  hospital  or  a  library. 

One  might,  then,  put  on  a  hermit's  garb  with  a  sin- 
cere wish  to  withdraw  from  the  temptations  of  the  world 
and  pass  the  time  in  prayer  and  meditation;  or  he  might 
adopt  the  name  of  hermit  as  an  easy,  comfortable  way 
of  making  a  living  without  working  for  it.  There  were 
so  many  of  these  pretenders  that  in  the  laws  they  were 
often  classed  with  beggars  and  vagabonds.  They  make 
themselves  hermits  "their  ease  to  have,"  says  the  old 
poem  of  Piers  Plowman.  In  England  in  the  fourteenth 

180 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

century  it  was  forbidden  for  a  man  to  call  himself  a 
hermit  unless  he  had  been  formally  pronounced  one  by 
his  bishop;  and  there  was  a  regular  service  for  blessing 
a  man  and  setting  him  apart  to  the  solitary  life.  Some 
bishops  went  so  far  as  to  refuse  to  give  a  man  the  title 
of  hermit  unless  provision  had  already  been  made  for  his 
maintenance. 

Hermits  were  not  the  only  people  who  withdrew 
from  the  world.  There  were  also  anchorites  and  an- 
choresses, who  dwelt  in  little  cells  or  houses  attached 
often  to  some  church  or  monastery.  There  was  a  ser- 
vice for  the  "  enclosing "  of  a  recluse.  He  was  to  be 
warned  that  it  was  no  merit  in  him  to  shut  himself 
away  from  others;  but  that  he  yielded  to  temptation  or 
led  others  into  wrong  so  easily  that  he  was  to  be  put 
into  the  cell  as  into  a  prison.  This  cell  was  sometimes 
a  single  room  and  sometimes  a  little  house  with  a  gar- 
den; but,  whatever  it  was,  the  recluse  was  supposed 
never  to  leave  it  so  long  as  he  lived.  If  he  had  but  a 
single  room,  it  was  to  be  of  good  size,  to  have  three 
windows,  —  one  for  light,  one  through  which  food 
might  be  passed,  and  one  opening  into  the  church. 
Here  the  recluse  prayed,  read,  wrote,  and  sometimes 
loaded  himself  with  chains  and  bore  severe  penances; 

181 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

or  else  lived  at  his  ease  and  with  a  very  moderate 
amount  of  discomfort.  There  is  a  quaint  old  book  called 
The  Ancren  Riwle,  or  rule  for  anchoresses,  written  by 
a  bishop  of  the  thirteenth  century,  that  gives  a  pretty 
good  idea  of  the  life  of  a  woman  recluse.  She  might 
sew,  not  on  silken  purses  and  such  vanities,  but  on 
clothes  for  poor  folk;  or  she  might  embroider  vest- 
ments for  the  use  of  the  church.  She  must  not  wear 
jewelry  or  ornamented  girdles.  She  must  be  obedient  to 
her  bishop  and  to  the  Pope.  In  her  room  there  was  to 
be  an  altar  and  a  cheery  little  fireplace;  and  the  good 
bishop  gives  her  express  permission  to  keep  a  cat  that 
may  sit  on  the  hearth  and  purr.  She  may  even  enter- 
tain her  friends,  though  in  rather  an  unsatisfactory 
fashion.  Her  maid  is  to  see  to  it  that  everything  is 
done  for  their  comfort;  but  the  hostess  is  only  permitted 
to  open  her  little  window  once  or  twice  and  make  signs 
to  them  of  the  pleasure  that  their  visit  is  giving  her. 
The  window  seems  to  have  been  the  greatest  tempta- 
tion of  an  anchoress ;  for  the  busy  world  was  passing  by 
that  little  opening,  and  it  was  harder  to  forget  it  than 
if  she  had  been  entirely  shut  away  from  it  in  a  convent. 
The  bishop  warns  her  that  she  must  never  put  her  head 
out,  and  that  she  must  not  even  hold  lengthy  conversa- 

182 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

tions  with  any  one  through  it ;  she  may  "  sit  and  listen, 
and  not  cackle."  Whether  all  the  recluses  were  invari- 
ably obedient  is  a  question. 

Thousands  of  honest,  conscientious  men  and  women 
had  given  up  their  homes,  their  friends,  and  even  the 
most  innocent  pleasures  of  the  world  to  become  monks 
or  nuns  or  recluses,  to  live  a  life  that  they  believed  would 
make  them  acceptable  to  God.  They  taught  those  who 
came  to  their  schools,  and  they  fed  the  hungry  folk  who 
gathered  at  their  gates ;  but  there  were  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands of  people  who  were  not  reached  by  the  monks  and 
nuns  or  even  by  the  clergy ;  and  orders  were  now  formed 
whose  business  it  was,  not  to  remain  in  a  cloister,  but  to 
go  out  into  the  world  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  poor 
and  needy  and  help  them  in  every  way  possible.  The 
men  who  joined  these  orders  were  known  as  preaching 
friars,  from  the  Latin  fratres  and  the  French  frtres,  mean- 
ing brothers.  The  founder  was  Saint  Francis  of  Assisi, 
as  he  is  now  called.  His  father  had  made  him  a  partner 
in  his  business;  but  the  son's  only  idea  of  managing 
money  was  to  give  away  all  that  came  into  his  hands, 
and  the  father  soon  brought  the  partnership  to  an  end. 
One  in  particular  of  the  sayings  of  Jesus  burned  in  the 
young  man's  heart,  and  he  said  it  over  and  over  to  him- 

183 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

self.  It  was,  "  Provide  neither  gold,  nor  silver,  nor  brass 
in  your  purses;  nor  scrip  for  your  journey,  neither  two 
coats,  neither  shoes,  nor  yet  staves;  for  the  workman  is 
worthy  of  his  meat."  This  command  Jesus  gave  to  his 
disciples  when  he  sent  them  out  two  by  two ;  and  the 
honest  young  Francis  made  up  his  mind  that  in  this  way 
preachers  ought  still  to  go  forth  into  the  world.  He  laid 
down  his  staff,  put  off  his  shoes,  flung  away  his  purse, 
and  fastened  up  his  gown  with  a  girdle  of  rope.  He  gave 
up  all  claim  to  his  inheritance  and  went  out  among  the 
people  to  tell  them  that  God  loved  them,  that  Jesus  had 
died,  had  risen,  and  was  alive  for  evermore.  A  few  other 
enthusiastic  men  joined  him.  He  required  that  the  vow 
of  poverty  should  be  a  real  one  for  them,  both  as  indi- 
viduals and  as  an  order,  that  they  should  work  with  their 
hands  for  their  food,  and  that,  if  work  or  wages  failed, 
they  should  beg  their  bread  from  door  to  door.  Charm- 
ing little  stories  of  the  saint  and  his  followers  are  told  in 
the  Little  Flowers  of  Saint  Francis.  One  tells  us  that  he 
and  "  Brother  Matteo  "  begged  some  crusts  of  bread  and 
sat  down  on  a  stone  beside  a  fountain  to  eat  them.  "  O 
Brother  Matteo,  we  are  not  worthy  of  this  great  treas- 
ure," Saint  Francis  exclaimed.  But  the  matter-of-fact 
Brother  Matteo  replied,  "  How  canst  thou  talk  of  a  treas- 

184 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

ure  when  we  are  so  poor  and  in  need  of  everything  ?  We 
have  neither  cloth,  nor  knife,  nor  table,  nor  house  to  eat 
in,  nor  servant  or  maid  to  wait  upon  us."  Saint  Francis 
answered  in  all  simplicity  and  sincerity,  "And  this  is 
just  the  reason  why  I  look  upon  it  as  a  great  treasure, 
because  man  has  had  no  hand  in 
it,  but  all  has  been  given  to  us  by 
divine  Providence,  as  we  clearly 
see  in  this  beautiful  table  of  stone, 
and  in  this  clear  fountain. 
Wherefore  let  us  beg  of  God  to 
make  us  love  with  all  our  hearts 
the  treasure  of  holy  poverty." 
The  Franciscans  went  about 
doing  good.  The  name  that 
their  founder  chose  for  them 
was  Fratres  Minores,  or  the  lesser 
brethren,  for,  as  he  said,  none 
could  be  less,  that  is,  of  lower 
degree  than  they.  They  cared  for  the  sick,  and  de- 
voted themselves  especially  to  the  loathsome  lepers, 
those  sufferers  who  were  driven  out  of  the  towns  as 
too  disgusting  for  folk  to  look  upon.  They  journeyed 
everywhere,  from  England  to  Syria.  They  had  no  fear, 

185 


FRANCISCAN 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  without  a  thought  of  danger  they  went  among  the 
Mohammedans.  Francis  asked  the  sultan  to  have  a  great 
fire  built,  "  And  I  will  enter  into  it  together  with  your 
priests/'  he  said,  "that  you  may  see  which  religion  is  the 
true  one."  The  sultan  replied  quietly  that  he  hardly 
thought  any  of  his  priests  would  be  willing  to  make  the 
trial.  He  offered  Francis  many  gifts,  which  the  saint  re- 
fused, and  then  sent  him  back  to  the  Christian  camp. 

Francis  insisted  upon  absolute  poverty.  He  would  not 
own  even  a  breviary.  A  church  was  given  him  to  be  the 
headquarters  of  his  order.  He  was  glad  to  have  its  use, 
but  he  refused  to  own  it ;  and  each  year  he  sent  to  the 

donors  a  basket  of  fish  to  indicate  that  it  was  not  his 

t 

but  theirs.  He  loved  animals,  and  if  half  the  legends  of 
his  intercourse  with  them  are  true,  they  recognized  this 
love ;  and  dogs,  doves,  and  even  savage  wolves  trusted 
him.  One  of  the  most  beautiful  stories  told  of  him  is  of 
his  preaching  to  the  birds.  "My  little  sisters,"  he  said, 
"  you  owe  much  to  God,  your  Creator,  and  ought  to  sing 
his  praises  at  all  times  and  in  all  places,  because  he  has 
given  you  liberty  and  the  air  to  fly  about  in,  and  cloth- 
ing for  yourselves  and  for  your  young.  He  has  given  you 
fountains  and  rivers  to  quench  your  thirst,  mountains  and 
valleys  in  which  to  take  refuge,  and  trees  in  which  to 

186 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

build   your  nests.    Your  Creator  loves  you   much,  and 
therefore  he  has  bestowed  such  favors  upon  you.  Beware, 


ST.    FRANCIS    PREACHING    TO    THE    BIRDS 

my  little  sisters,  of  the  sin  of  ingratitude,  and  study  al- 
ways to  praise  your  Lord."  The  story  declares  that  the 
little  birds  flapped  their  wings,  bowed  their  heads  to  the 

187 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

ground,  and  after  he  had  made  the  sign  of  the  cross  to 
dismiss  them,  they  rose  from  the  earth  and  flew  away  in 
four  directions,  all  singing  most  sweetly. 

Saint  Francis  cared  little  for  the  learning  that  comes 
from  books ;  but  educated  men  were  charmed  with  his 
sincerity  and  his  lovable  character  and  became  his  fol- 
lowers. An  order  of  Franciscan  nuns  was  formed,  the 
Poor  Ladies;  and  also  the  order  of  the  Penitent  Men  and 
Women.  The  members  of  this  third  order  might  remain 
in  the  world,  but  they  were  to  dress  simply,  to  abstain 
from  worldly  amusements,  to  bear  no  arms  save  in  de- 
fence of  their  country  or  the  Church,  and  to  pay  strict 
attention  to  the  required  fasts  and  times  of  special  devo- 
tion. The  dress  of  the  Minorites  varied  somewhat  in  dif- 
ferent countries.  In  England  they  wore  gray ;  and  there- 
fore in  that  country  they  were  often  called  the  Gray  Friars. 

The  Dominicans  were  founded  by  Saint  Dominic  of 
Spain,  and  from  the  start  this  order  was  made  up  of  men 
of  learning.  There  are  many  pleasant  legends  of  Dominic 
in  his  younger  days.  One  says  that  when  he  was  baptized, 
a  brilliant  star  shone  upon  his  forehead.  It  is  said  that  in 
time  of  famine  he  sold  not  only  his  clothes,  but  even  his 
beloved  books  to  feed  the  hungry.  Once  he  even  offered 
to  sell  himself.  He  found  a  poor  woman  in  great  distress 

188 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

because  her  son  had  been  taken  captive  by  the  Moors. 
"Sell  me  for  a  slave,"  he  said  eagerly,  "and  then  you 
will  have  money  enough  to  ransom  him." 

The  Dominicans  were  often  called  the  Black  Friars 
because  of  the  black  cloaks  that 
they  wore.  They  took  the  same 
vows  of  poverty  as  the  Francis- 
cans. Dominic  allowed  in  their 
cells  a  bedstead  and  a  rude  bench 
and  nothing  else.  Even  in  the 
church  ornaments  were  forbid- 
den, and  the  sacred  vestments 
must  not  be  made  of  silk  or 
adorned  in  any  way. 

These  two  mendicant,  or  beg- 
ging, orders  went  up  and  down 
the  countries  of  Europe,  caring 
for  the  poor  and  preaching  to 
them.  They  always  made  their  journeys  on  foot.  Saint 
Dominic  carried  a  bundle  on  his  shoulder  and  a  stick  in 
his  hand.  In  passing  through  towns  he  wore  shoes ;  but 
after  he  had  left  a  town  behind  him,  he  went  barefooted ; 
and  the  sharper  the  thorns  or  the  stones  of  the  road,  the 
more  cheery  he  appeared. 

189 


DOMINICAN    FRIAR 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

There  was  need  of  preaching.  The  crusaders  had 
learned  of  Mohammedanism,  and  some  had  actually  given 
up  their  Christian  faith  and  adopted  the  belief  of  the 
Saracens.  While  there  were  thousands  upon  thousands 
who  loved  the  Church  and  believed  all  that  she  taught, 
there  were  other  thousands  who  stood  off  at  one  side 
and  criticised  and  refused  to  obey  her  commands. 
Then  something  more  than  persuasion  was  used.  The 
disobedient  son  was  excommunicated,  that  is,  he  was  shut 
out  of  the  church,  and  was  treated  like  an  outcast.  His 
nearest  friends,  even  his  own  family,  were  forbidden  to 
help  him  in  any  way.  They  were  not  even  allowed  to 
sit  at  table  with  him.  If  he  died  before  being  reconciled 
to  the  Church,  it  was  taught  that  he  would  suffer  pun- 
ishment forever.  If  this  man  happened  to  be  a  king  and 
remained  obstinate,  his  whole  kingdom  was  laid  under 
an  interdict.  Churches  were  closed  throughout  the  land; 
children  could  not  be  christened ;  marriages  could  not 
be  solemnized ;  no  services  could  be  held  at  the  burial 
of  the  dead. 

Now  an  interdict  sometimes  lasted  for  a  number  of 
years,  and  it  worked  in  more  than  one  way.  It  usually 
forced  a  king  to  yield ;  but  the  people  who  were  true  to 
the  Church  it  made  desolate  and  miserable ;  and  those 

190 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

who  were  inclined  to  be  careless  it  made  reckless  and 
defiant.  Strange,  new  beliefs  sprang  up  that  were  con- 
trary to  the  teachings  of  the  Church.  The  Poor  Men  of 
Lyons,  or  Waldenses,  taught  that  there  was  no  reason  why 
men  should  obey  the  clergy.  The  Albigenses,  who  lived 
in  southern  France  between  the  Garonne  and  the  Rhone 
rivers,  believed  that  the  world  had  been  made,  not  by 
God,  but  by  Satan,  and  that  there  was  continual  warfare 
going  on  between  the  two  powers,  one  of  good  and  one 
of  evil.  These  heresies  must  be  put  down,  the  Church 
authorities  declared,  or  soon  there  would  be  a  terrible 
struggle. 

It  had  happened  that  on  one  of  his  journeys  Dominic 
had  spent  the  night  in  the  house  of  a  man  who  belonged 
to  the  Albigenses.  All  night  long  they  talked  of  the  faith ; 
and  before  the  traveler  went  on  his  way  in  the  morning, 
he  had  convinced  his  host  that  the  way  of  the  Church 
was  the  only  true  way.  He  now  went  among  the  Albi- 
genses, and  did  his  best  to  convert  them,  but  without 
success.  They  were  protected  by  the  Count  of  Toulouse ; 
and  by  the  Pope's  orders  war  was  waged  against  him. 
Their  towns  were  destroyed,  and  large  numbers  of  men, 
women,  and  children  were  slaughtered.  In  Italy  there 
were  many  heretics ;  and  the  emperor  commanded  that 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

those  who  were  proved  guilty  should  be  burned  at  the 
stake.  Other  countries  followed  his  example.  A  system 
known  as  the  Inquisition  was  established ;  and  now  any 
one  suspected  of  heresy  could  be  brought  before  officials 
appointed  by  the  Church  and  examined  with  tortures 
too  horrible  to  relate.  If  he  was  pronounced  guilty,  he 
was  given  over  to  the  "secular  arm,"  that  is,  to  the  state, 
and  was  burned  to  death.  It  was  a  terrible  time;  but  it 
must  be  remembered  that  religious  freedom  was  unheard 
of,  and  that  any  belief  contrary  to  that  of  the  Church 
was  looked  upon  by  churchmen  as  a  crime  against  God 
which  his  followers  were  bound  to  destroy.  Even  a  man 
so  gentle  and  merciful  as  Saint  Louis  of  France  did  not 
hesitate  for  a  moment  to  punish  heretics  with  the  utmost 
severity.  For  this  work  of  the  Inquisition  members  of 
the  Franciscan  and  Dominican  orders  were  usually  chosen, 
because  their  vow  of  poverty  would  keep  them  from  ac- 
cepting bribes.  People  gazed  scornfully  at  the  magnifi- 
cent buildings  of  the  other  monastic  orders  and  said, 
"  And  those  people  have  taken  the  vow  of  poverty !  "  but 
there  was  no  question  that  the  mendicant  friars  were  as 
poor  as  the  poorest.  No  one  could  think  for  a  moment 
that  they  were  not  in  earnest,  and  great  numbers  of  people 
joined  the  orders.  For  some  years  the  friars  were  not 

192 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

allowed  to  teach  theology  in  the  universities;  but  the 
learned  professors  of  theology  sometimes  resigned  their 
positions  and  became  Franciscans  or  Dominicans. 

It  is  not  easy  to  be  in  the  very  midst  of  life  and  still 
live  entirely  apart  from  the  wishes  and  ambitions  of 
those  round  about.  People  felt  such  reverence  for  the 
begging  friars  that  money  was  almost  forced  upon  them ; 
and  after  a  while  they  began  to  feel  the  same  ambition 
for  the  greatness,  not  of  themselves,  but  of  their  orders, 
that  was  felt  by  the  monks.  Their  character  changed, 
but  in  time  there  came  reform  and  a  return  in  some 
degree  to  the  ideals  of  their  founders. 

Somewhat  earlier  than  the  formation  of  these  orders 
of  monks  and  friars  that  have  been  described,  zealous, 
enthusiastic  missionaries  preached  the  Gospel  in  the 
countries  of  western  Europe.  Two  of  the  most  famous 
of  them  were  Saint  Patrick  in  the  sixth  century  and 
Saint  Augustine  in  the  seventh.  Saint  Patrick  is  thought 
to  have  been  captured  by  pirates  when  he  was  about 
fifteen  years  of  age  and  sold  as  a  slave  in  Ireland.  For 
six  long  years  he  led  a  lonely  life,  tending  sheep  on 
the  mountain  side.  He  had  no  one  to  talk  to,  and  he 
began  to  talk  to  God.  Sometimes,  he  says,  he  poured 
out  his  prayers  a  hundred  times  a  day.  His  eyes  were 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

wide  open  for  a  chance  to  escape;  and  at  the  end  of  the 
sixth  year  he  succeeded  in  making  his  way  to  his  old 
home  in  Scotland.  But  in  his  dreams  he  often  heard 
the  voices  of  the  Irish  calling,  "  Come  and  teach  us  of 

the  Christ";  and  he  went  to 
France  to  study  and  prepare 
to  be  a  missionary.  When  he 
was  ready,  he  returned  to  Ire- 
land in  a  little  boat.  "  Pirates, 
master,  there  are  pirates  on 
the  shore!  "  cried  a  herdsman. 
But  when  the  master  and  his 
people  came  with  arms  to 
drive  the  pirates  away,  they 
found  a  little  group  of  people 
of  such  noble  and  dignified 
bearing  that  instead  of  at- 
tacking them,  he  asked  them 
to  be  his  guests;  and  he  and  his  family  soon  became 
Christians. 

Easter  was  at  hand,  and  Saint  Patrick,  as  was  the  cus- 
tom, kindled  an  Easter  fire.  This  time  was  also  a  festi- 
val among  the  heathen  in  honor  of  the  goddess  of 
spring;  and  when  king  Leoghaire  went  out  to  light  his 

194 


SAINT    PATRICK 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

own  fire,  behold,  he  saw  one  burning  on  the  hill  of 
Slane.  The  law  of  the  land  was  that  while  the  king's 
fire  was  ablaze,  no  other  should  burn  in  all  the  country 
around.  The  penalty  of  breaking  this  law  was  death. 
Leoghaire  sent  in  wrath  for  these  bold  strangers  to  be 
brought  before  him  to  defend  themselves.  This  was 
just  what  the  fearless  missionary  wanted.  On  Easter 
Sunday,  he  and  his  companions  in  their  fresh  white 
robes  came  into  the  presence  of  the  king,  and  told  him 
of  the  religion  of  Christ.  He  listened  closely,  and  gave 
them  permission  to  preach  in  his  dominions  wherever 
they  might  choose.  This  was  the  beginning  of  Saint 
Patrick's  preaching.  Up  and  down  the  land  he  and  his 
friends  journeyed,  teaching  the  people  and  founding 
churches;  and  when  he  died,  at  a  good  old  age,  the 
whole  country  mourned  for  him. 

It  is  thought  that  there  were  Christians  in  some  parts 
of  Ireland  even  before  the  coming  of  Saint  Patrick ;  but 
no  one  knows  how  the  faith  of  Christ  first  became 
known  in  the  land.  In  England,  too,  the  earlier  inhab- 
itants, the  Britons,  had  learned  Christianity;  but  they 
had  been  either  slain  or  driven  to  the  westward  by  the 
Saxons.  These  Saxons  were  heathen ;  and  in  the  seventh 
century,  Saint  Augustine  was  sent  by  the  Pope  to  preach 

195 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  them.  He  landed  on  the  Island  of  Thanet  and  sent 
word  to  King  Ethelbert,  "  We  are  come  from  Rome, 
and  we  have  brought  a  joyful  message.  It  assures  to  all 
who  receive  it  everlasting  happiness  in  heaven,  and  a 
kingdom  that  will  never  end,  with  the  living  and  true 
God." 

Now  the  king  had  married  a  Prankish  princess  who 
was  a  Christian,  and  probably  this  was  why  he  was 
willing  to  listen  to  these  strangers.  He  was  a  little 
afraid  that  they  might  bewitch  him,  however,  and  when 
he  came  to  hear  what  they  had  to  say,  he  refused  to  en- 
ter a  house,  and  seated  himself  in  the  open  air  where  no 
magic  arts  would  have  effect.  He  listened  to  their  preach- 
ing ;  and  then  told  them  that,  although  their  words  were 
fair,  they  were  new,  and  he  could  not  forsake  the  belief 
which  he  and  the  nation  had  followed  so  long.  "  But 
I  will  provide  you  with  a  house  in  Canterbury,"  he 
said,  "with  food  and  whatever  else  you  need,  and  you 
may  preach  and  gain  as  many  as  you  can  to  your 
faith." 

So  the  missionaries  preached  and  prayed.  They  held 
services  in  the  queen's  church,  and  by  and  by  the 
king  himself  became  a  Christian.  Then  he  gave  the 
preachers  a  settled  home  in  Canterbury  and  property 

196 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

enough  to  supply  all  their  needs.  So  it  was  that  the 
faith  of  Christ  was  preached  in  England.  The  king  was 
ready  to  build  monasteries  and  churches.  Sometimes 
he  built  them  from  the  foundation,  and  sometimes  he 
repaired  a  building  left  by  the  Romans.  In  Canterbury 
there  was  an  old  church  which  some  of  the  Romans 
who  were  Christians  had  built  and  used.  This  he  had 
put  in  order.  In  later  years  the  more  modern  church 
that  took  its  place  became  the  cathedral  of  Canterbury 
to  which  so  many  pilgrims  went  to  pray  at  the  shrine 
of  Thomas  a  Becket. 

In  Germany  a  number  of  Irish  priests  worked  among 
the  people  in  the  early  part  of  the  seventh  century ;  but 
when  Saint  Boniface  came  from  England  in  717,  he 
wrote  to  the  Pope  that  "  for  sixty  or  seventy  years  past 
religion  had  vanished."  He  set  to  work  most  heartily 
to  persuade  the  people  of  Hesse  that  the  religion  of 
Christ  was  true.  Some  believed  what  he  taught  and  be- 
came sincere  Christians.  Many,  however,  were  "inclined 
to  accept  this  new  teaching,  but  were  a  little  afraid  of 
what  their  old  gods  might  do  to  them  if  they  should 
desert  them  entirely.  When  they  were  in  quiet  and 
safety,  they  were  willing  to  trust  the  God  of  the  Chris- 
tians; but  when  they  were  in  danger,  especially  if  out 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

on  a  stormy  ocean,  they  thought  it  was  more  prudent 
to  call  upon  Odin  and  Thor.  Boniface  discovered  that 
some  of  the  people  who  had  been  baptized  as  Christians 
were  in  the  habit  of  slipping  away  into  the  woods,  out 
of  the  sight  of  the  priests,  and  there  offering  up  sacri- 
fices to  trees  and  springs.  Many,  too,  were  practicing 
divination  and  soothsaying.  The  wise  missionary  con- 
sulted with  some  of  the  most  sincere  and  courageous 
among  his  followers,  and  they  decided  what  to  do  to 
prove  to  these  half-hearted  folk  that  they  need  have  no 
fear  of  their  old  gods.  It  seems  that  there  was  an  im- 
mense oak  tree  in  the  land  sacred  to  the  god  Thor,  and 
therefore  called  the  Oak  of  Thor.  The  missionary  took 
an  axe,  and  he  and  his  faithful  followers  went  straight 
to  the  sacred  tree.  Then  the  timid  folk  were  thoroughly 
frightened.  He  raised  his  axe  and  struck  a  blow.  "  He 
is  the  enemy  of  the  gods,"  cried  the  people,  and  they 
called  down  bitter  curses  upon  him,  and  stood  trembling 
with  fear.  No  one  knew  what  would  happen,  but  they 
believed  that  at  the  very  least  fire  would  burst  out  and 
destroy  this  daring  preacher.  But  Boniface  kept  on  until 
he  had  cut  into  the  trunk  a  little  way;  when,  behold,  a 
gentle  breeze  rustled  the  upper  leaves,  and  suddenly  the 
top  of  the  tree  snapped  off  and  broke  into  four  parts  — 

198 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

at  any  rate,  that  is  the  tradition.  Then  the  people  said 
to  one  another,  "  That  is  surely  the  power  of  the  Chris- 
tian God."  They  left  off  cursing  the  preacher  and  began 
to  praise  God.  Boniface  built  an  oratory  from  the  wood 
of  the  tree.  He  founded  monasteries  where  the  monks 
worked  on  the  soil  and  copied  books,  helped  the  poor, 
and  showed  hospitality  to  travelers.  He  longed  to  die 
as  a  martyr,  and  his  wish  was  granted.  On  one  of  his 
journeys  down  the  Rhine,  a  crowd  of  the  heathen  sud- 
denly rushed  out  of  the  woods.  He  thought  that  they 
were  coming  to  ask  for  baptism,  but  instead  of  that 
they  attacked  him  to  get  the  booty  which  they  supposed 
he  had  with  him.  He  forbade  his  followers  to  protect 
him  by  the  shedding  of  blood;  and  holding  the  book 
of  the  Gospels  over  his  head,  he  met  the  martyrdom 
that  he  desired. 

Not  all  the  missionary  work  was  done  by  monks  and 
saints.  There  were  kings  who  converted  many  to  bap- 
tism, but  by  methods  decidedly  different  from  the  per- 
suasions and  arguments  of  the  good  missionaries.  One 
of  the  two  kings  was  Charlemagne.  His  people,  the 
Franks,  had  become  Christians;  but  on  their  borders 
were  the  heathen  Saxons.  There  was  constant  trouble 
between  the  two  peoples,  and  at  length  Charlemagne 

199 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

set  out  to  conquer  the  Saxons,  and  in  the  warlike  fash- 
ion of  the  day,  to  make  them  Christians.  Now,  just  as 
the  people  of  Hesse  had  a  sacred  oak,  so  the  Saxons  had 
a  sacred  statue,  which  stood  northwest  of  what  is  now 
Cassel.  It  represented  a  warrior  holding  a  banner  in 
one  hand  and  a  balance  in  the  other.  On  his  breastplate 
was  a  bear,  to  indicate  courage.  On  his  shield  was  pic- 
tured a  lion  resting  on  a  bed  of  flowers,  to  express  the 
idea  that  to  the  fearless  warrior  battle  was  a  time  of  en- 
joyment. It  is  probable  that  in  the  first  place  the  statue 
represented  one  Arminius  who  won  a  great  victory  over 
the  Romans,  and  that  its  name,  Irminsul,  had  been 
originally  Arminius.  It  stood  on  a  high  pillar.  Priests 
lived  near  it  to  offer  up  sacrifices,  often  prisoners  taken 
in  war,  and  priestesses  here  practiced  incantations  and 
soothsaying.  Charlemagne  destroyed  the  Irminsul,  and 
pushed  on  until  the  Saxons  were  subdued.  He  told  them 
that  they  must  promise  to  be  faithful  to  him  and  that 
they  must  be  baptized.  They  had  little  choice  in  the 
matter,  for  if  they  refused,  the  headsman  with  his  axe 
stood  waiting.  If  they  submitted,  the  royal  missionary 
was  ready  to  reward  them  with  gifts.  Naturally,  they 
promised  whatever  he  wished ;  and  the  converts  were 
escorted  to  the  banks  of  the  Lippe  River.  Thither 

2OO 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

came  the  priests  and  monks  and  bishops  of  the  Franks. 
Charlemagne  and  his  nobles  became  sponsors,  and  these 
fierce  new  Christians  were  baptized  without  delay.  In- 


CHARLEMAGNE    INFLICTING    BAPTISM    ON    THE    SAXONS 

deed,  it  is  said  that  somewhat  later  they  found  the  new 
faith  so  profitable  in  the  matter  of  white  robes  and  bap- 
tismal gifts  of  ornaments  and  weapons  that  they  came 
every  Easter  in  increasing  numbers.  The  old  story  says 

201 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

that  on  one  occasion  fifty  bold  Northmen  presented 
themselves  for  baptism.  There  were  not  enough  robes 
of  white  linen  prepared,  and  therefore  garments  were 
hastily  cut  out  of  whatever  cloth  could  be  obtained  and 
sewed  up  roughly  like  bags.  One  of  the  new  converts 
cried  in  a  rage,  "I  have  been  baptized  here  twenty 
times  before,  and  every  time  I  was  clothed  in  the  best 
of  white  garments ;  and  now  you  give  me  a  sack  better 
fitted  to  a  swineherd  than  a  warrior." 

This  was  in  the  reign  of  a  weaker  king  than  Charle- 
magne, but  even  in  his  day  the  Saxons  revolted  again 
and  again  and  struggled  for  their  freedom.  They  de- 
stroyed the  churches  and  tore  down  the  crosses.  When- 
ever they  came  to  a  convent,  they  left  it  in  ruins.  Saint 
Boniface  had  been  buried  at  the  convent  of  Fulda.  The 
monks  caught  up  his  body  as  their  greatest  treasure  and 
fled  for  their  lives.  Wittekind,  leader  of  the  Saxons, 
finally  became  a  Christian  convert  and  a  most  zealous 
one.  There  is  a  tradition  that  he  made  his  way  into 
Charlemagne's  camp  in  disguise  as  a  spy,  and  that  he 
chanced  to  enter  the  tent  where  mass  was  being  cele- 
brated. Just  at  that  moment  the  priest  was  elevating  the 
consecrated  bread,  and  as  the  heathen  chieftain  gazed  in 
amazement  and  curiosity,  a  light  shone  out  from  the 

2O2 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

host,  and  in  the  light  he  saw  a  wonderfully  beautiful 
child,  the  Christ  Child.  The  tradition  says  that  Witte- 
kind  was  discovered  and  taken  to  Charlemagne,  that  he 
begged  to  be  baptized  and  to  enter  the  church,  and  be- 
came an  ardent  teacher  of  his  people. 

Another  imperial  missionary  was  King  -Olaf  Trygvas- 
son  of  Norway.  He  had  a  wild,  strange  boyhood.  He 
was  captured  by  pirates  and  sold  as  a  slave.  He  became 
a  fearless  viking,  and  succeeded  in  making  his  way  back 
to  Norway  and  getting  possession  of  his  great-grand- 
father's throne.  In  Longfellow's  Saga  of  King  Olaf,  he 
says  that  the  king  was 

Trained  for  either  camp  or  court, 
Skilful  in  each  manly  sport, 

Young  and  beautiful  and  tall ; 
Art  of  warfare,  art  of  chases, 
Swimming,  skating,  snow-shoe  races, 

Excellent  alike  in  all. 

King  Olaf  loved  warfare,  the  din  of  armor,  and  the 
flashing  of  steel,  and  one  of  his  commands  to  his  skald, 

or  poet,  was 

Sing  me  a  song  divine, 

With  a  sword  in  every  line. 

It  was  probably  on  one  of  his  viking  voyages  to  Eng- 
land that  he  became  a  Christian.  He  was  as  much  in 

203 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

earnest  in  his  religion  as  in  his  fighting,  and  he  set  to 
work  to  make  his  countrymen  Christians  whether  they 
would  or  not.  Christianity  was  not  new  in  Norway ; 
but  the  Norwegians  had  little  idea  of  giving  up  the  old 
ways.  King  Olaf  persuaded,  he  bribed,  he  threatened, 
he  even  tortured ;  and  before  his  reign  of  five  years  was 
at  an  end,  he  had  made  Norway  an  exceedingly  un- 
comfortable place  for  any  one  who  persisted  in  worship- 
ing heathen  gods.  In  a  fascinating  old  book,  The 
Heimskringla,  or  Chronicles  of  the  Kings  of  Norway,  which 
has  been  translated  from  the  Icelandic,  are  the  stories 
of  Olaf.  Longfellow  has  put  many  of  them  into  verse. 
At  one  time  when  King  Olaf  had  called  a  meeting 
of  his  people,  they  came  fully  armed  to  demand  that 
he  restore  the  old  worship  of  the  gods  and  offer  up  sac- 
rifices. Olaf  was  a  match  for  them.  He  said,  "  If  I, 
along  with  you,  shall  turn  again  to  making  sacrifices, 
then  will  I  make  the  greatest  sacrifices.  I  will  not  offer  up 
slaves  or  malefactors,  but  men  of  note  and  high  degree. " 
He  named  eleven  of  the  prominent  men  present,  and 
ordered  them  to  be  seized  at  once.  Then  he  strode  into 
the  temple  and  smote  the  images  of  Thor  and  Odin  and 
the  other  gods  and  dashed  them  to  the  floor.  Without 
the  temple  there  was  a  sound  of  fighting  between  the 

204 


Hermits,  Friars,  and  Missionaries 

men  at  arms  and  the  peasants.  There  was  a  shout  of  tri- 
umph and  a  wail  of  sorrpw;  and  as  Olaf  stood  in  the 
doorway,  he  saw  the  dead  body  of  Iron-Beard,  strongest 
of  his  foes.  Longfellow  thus  tells  the  ending  of  this 
story  of  King  Olaf  s  missionary  work :  — 

King  Olaf  from  the  doorway  spoke : 
"  Choose  ye  between  two  things,  my  folk, 
To  be  baptized  or  given  up  to  slaughter  J  " 

And  seeing  their  leader  stark  and  dead, 
The  people  with  a  murmur  said, 
"  O  King,  baptize  us  with  thy  holy  water." 

This  fashion  of  carrying  on  missions  in  the  eleventh 
century  was  little  like  the  methods  pursued  in  the  twen- 
tieth ;  but  no  one  can  say  that  it  was  not  at  least  ener- 
getic and  sincere. 


CHAPTER    X 

LIFE     IN    TOWN 

SOME  of  the  towns  in  Europe  had  existed  since  the  days 
of  the  Romans,  but  those  that  grew  up  during  the  Mid- 
dle Ages  were  usually  situated  near  some  convent  or  cas- 
tle. A  large  convent  served  as  an  inn  for  travelers ;  it  had 
the  care  of  many  manors ;  and  often  it  was  also  a  school 
and  a  place  of  pilgrimage.  The  castle,  too,  entertained 
a  large  number  of  guests  and  controlled  numerous  man- 
ors. Men  were  needed  at  both  places  for  all  sorts  of 
work,  and  there  was  a  sale  for  whatever  they  produced. 
Moreover,  they  were  sure  of  protection  ;  and  these  were 
three  good  reasons  why  people  should  make  their  homes 
under  the  walls  of  convents  and  castles.  Occasionally  it 
came  to  pass  that  a  manor  village  grew  into  a  town.  If  it 
chanced  to  have  a  particularly  strong  manor  house  with 
moat  and  heavy  stone  walls,  it  might  put  up  fortifications 
and  prove  itself  so  valuable  as  a  defense  that  the  lord  was 
very  willing  to  have  it  become  a  town.  He  would  give 
it  a  charter,  or  written  promise  of  privileges  and  protec- 
tion ;  and  this  would  bring  many  more  people  within  its 

206 


Life  in  Town 

walls  to  increase  his  income  by  their  taxes.  Sometimes 
a  town  was  founded  by  a  king  or  noble,  who  decided 
that  a  certain  place  was  a  good  location.  The  story  is  told 
that  once  when  Edward  I  of  England  was  on  a  hunting 
expedition,  his  attention  was  attracted  to  a  tiny  village 
on  the  wide  river  Humber  near  which  some  shepherds 
were  watching  their  flocks.  "  That  would  be  a  most  ex- 
cellent place  for  a  fortress,"  he  said  to  himself,  "and  a 
city  there  would  be  sure  to  carry  on  a  great  deal  of  com- 
merce." He  asked  the  shepherds  how  deep  the  river  was 
and  to  what  height  the  tides  rose.  The  land  belonged  to 
a  convent,  but  the  abbot  was  willing  to  take  other  land 
in  exchange.  Then  the  king  published  a  charter,  declar- 
ing the  rights  that  he  would  give  to  all  merchants  who 
would  carry  on  their  business  in  the  place.  So  it  was  that 
the  town  of  Hull  was  founded.  A  wall  and  towers  were 
built  for  defense,  and  the  settlement  flourished.  The  fact 
that  it  is  to-day  a  city  of  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  inhab- 
itants proves  the  wisdom  of  Edward  in  choosing  its 
location.  Such  a  made-to-order  town  was  commonly 
spoken  of  as  the  new  town  or  the^ra*  town.  Sometimes 
it  never  received  any  other  title ;  and  that  is  why  we  have 
such  names  as  Neustadt  and  Freiburg  in  Germany,  Vil- 
lanueva  and  Villafranca  in  Spain  and  Villeneuve  and  Ville- 

207 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

franche  in  France.  King  Edward  was  not  so  fortunate 
in  another  of  his  towns,  that  of  Winchelsea.  The  old 
settlement  had  been  washed  away  by  the  ocean,  and  the 
king  laid  out  another  one  on  a  new  site  two  miles  away. 
But  the  French  had  their  eyes  open,  and  they  pounced 
down  upon  it  before  the  walls  were  done.  People  did 
not  take  a  liking  to  it,  and  in  spite  of  the  king's  efforts, 
it  never  flourished.  Curiously  enough,  within  the  last 
four  hundred  years,  the  sea,  which  had  laid  the  old  town 
in  ruins,  has  retreated  from  the  new  town,  and  the  former 
seaport  is  now  a  village  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  ocean 
and  surrounded  by  a  salt  marsh. 

Italian  towns  were  stronger  and  larger  than  those  of 
France.  Each  one  held  wide-spreading  territories,  and 
therefore  the  whole  country  was  really  in  their  hands. 
Spain  had  chartered  communities  earlier  than  France  or 
England.  In  these  Spanish  towns  citizens  of  a  certain 
amount  of  property  paid  no  taxes;  but  if  fighting  men 
were  needed  to  protect  the  country,  they  were  bound  to 
serve  and  also  to  provide  horses  for  themselves  at  their 
own  expense.  For  this  reason,  a  man's  horse  could  not 
be  seized  for  debt.  In  France,  the  citizens  must  defend 
their  land  if  necessary;  but  they  could  be  called  out  for 
only  a  limited  time  and  to  a  certain  distance  from  the 

208 


Life  in  Town 

walls  of  their  home  city.  There  was  another  law  which 
also  tended  to  make  them  somewhat  independent.  This 
was  that  before  they  agreed  to  enter  upon  any  piece  of 
military  service,  they  had  a  right  to  take  into  account 
the  nature  of  the  cause  for  which  they  were  called  into 
service.  This  was  an  excellent  arrangement ;  for  if  two 
nobles,  for  instance,  took  up  arms  because  of  some  triv- 
ial quarrel,  the  citizens  could  not  be  forced  to  join  in  it. 

A  town,  then,  in  the  Middle  Ages  was  simply  a  large 
village  with  walls  and  towers.  It  had  special  privileges, 
granted  by  the  king  or  by  the  convent  or  the  noble  in 
whose  province  it  was  situated,  and  it  was  sure  to  gain 
more  either  by  purchase  or  by  some  shrewd  bargaining 
with  the  owner  in  his  time  of  need.  A  town  usually  had 
many  customs  peculiar  to  itself.  At  Chester  in  England, 
if  a  fire  caught  in  a  man's  house  and  the  flames  spread, 
he  must  pay  his  next  neighbor  two  shillings,  and  pay  the 
town  a  fine  of  five  shillings.  In  some  of  the  English  towns 
it  was  the  rule  for  the  mayor  and  corporation  to  walk 
once  a  year  around  the  boundaries,  inspecting  the  land- 
marks. A  company  of  children  were  taken  with  them, 
and  in  order  to  impress  the  limits  upon  their  minds, 
copper  coins  were  given  to  them  at  each  turning;  a  far 
more  agreeable  method  than  the  old  Roman  fashion  of 

209 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

sacrificing  a  lamb  or  a  pig  at  every  corner.  To  be  called 
a  city,  a  town  must  be  the  residence  of  the  bishop.  For 
a  long  while,  a  town  was  as  much  a  piece  of  private  pro- 
perty as  a  manor.  Its  lord  could  sell  it  if  he  chose,  and 
the  citizens  could  do  nothing  to  hinder  him.  The  value 
was  somewhat  in  proportion  to  its  size.  It  was  therefore 
of  advantage  to  the  owner  to  have  the  number  of  inhab- 
itants increase,  and  strangers  were  usually  welcome. 

The  walls  about  a  town  were  thick  and  high.  Watch- 
men were  always  on  guard  to  give  the  alarm  at  the  ap- 
proach of  an  enemy.  The  houses  were  built  of  various 
materials.  There  were  cottages  of  mud,  and  there  were 
comfortable  residences  of  brick.  Some  were  built  of 
wood  with  the  framework  arranged  in  elaborate  pat- 
terns. Others  were  ornamented  with  plaster  decorations 
and  painted  panels.  In  many  cases,  the  lower  story  was 
of  stone  and  the  rest  of  the  house  of  wood.  Roofs 
thatched  with  straw  or  reeds  were  common  for  a  long 
while ;  but  at  length  it  was  required  that  tiles  should 
be  used.  Windows  were  sometimes  glazed,  and  some- 
times the  space  was  filled  in  with  wooden  lattice  work. 
There  were  churches  and  inns  for  travelers,  and  there 
was  always  a  town  hall  in  which  the  business  of  the 
town  was  transacted.  The  town  halls  on  the  Continent 

2IO 


A    MEDIAEVAL    STREET    AND   TOWU    HALL 

211 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

were  larger  and  more  splendid  than  those  in  England ; 
but  the  English  halls  were  not  to  be  ashamed  of  by  any 
means;  for  it  was  a  matter  of  pride  with  a  town  to  have 
as  handsome  a  hall  as  could  be  afforded. 

By  far  the  greater  number  of  people  in  a  city  were 
either  craftsmen,  that  is,  manufacturers  of  various  arti- 
cles, or  merchants.  To  become  a  craftsman  required  a 
long  training.  If  a  boy  wished  to  be  a  carpenter,  for  in- 
stance, his  parents  selected  some  master  carpenter  and 
asked  him  to  take  their  son  as  an  apprentice.  If  he  was 
willing,  both  parents  and  master  signed  a  formal  agree- 
ment. The  parents  gave  their  son  into  the  charge  of 
the  master  for  a  fixed  number  of  years,  promising  on 
the  boy's  part  that  he  would  be  obedient  and  diligent 
and  would  not  tell  any  of  his  master's  secrets.  The 
master  agreed  to  give  the  boy  a  home  and  his  clothes 
and  to  teach  him  all  that  he  himself  knew  about  the  car- 
penter's trade.  The  boy  was  not  supposed  to  be  of  much 
service  during  the  first  years  of  his  apprenticeship;  but 
long  before  the  end  of  his  time  had  come,  he  was  ex- 
pected to  be  able  to  assist  his  master  enough  to  pay  him 
for  all  previous  trouble  and  expense. 

After  the  boy  had  learned  the  trade  and  his  time  was 
up,  he  became  a  journeyman.  This  name  is  thought  to 

212 


Life  in  Town 

have  come  from  the  French  journee,  meaning  day,  be- 
cause he  worked  by  the  day.  Many  journeymen  never 
rose  any  higher,  but  an  industrious  workman  could  soon 
save  enough  money  to  set  up  for  himself,  which  meant 
becoming  a  master,  having  a  shop  in  his  own  house, 
hiring  journeymen,  and  taking  apprentices.  Providing 
himself  with  tools  was  not  a  difficult  matter,  for  they 
were  few  and  simple.  Two  axes,  an  adze,  a  square,  and 
a  spokeshave  were  all  that  were  necessary  ;  and  their 
combined  cost  was  only  one  shilling.  Materials  were 
often  supplied  by  the  customers.  No  journeyman  was 
allowed  to  become  a  master  until  he  had  presented  a 
masterpiece,  or  an  excellent  piece  of  carpentry  to  the 
gild,  or  society  of  carpenters,  and  had  thus  shown  to 
them  that  he  was  able  to  do  work  that  would  meet 
with  their  approval. 

The  merchants  varied  in  rank  from  the  great  im- 
porter whose  vessels  sailed  wherever  desirable  exports 
could  be  found  to  the  small  tradesman  whose  little  shop 
was  in  his  own  house.  Some  of  these  merchants  were 
both  rich  and  generous,  and  attained  to  high  positions 
in  affairs  of  state.  They  built  for  themselves  handsome 
houses  that  were  probably  decidedly  more  comfortable 
than  the  castles  of  the  time.  The  house  of  one  of  the 

2I3 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

smaller  traders  was  usually  a  combination  of  shop  and 
home  and  storehouse.  The  building  was  generally  nar- 
row and  high  with  a  gable  overlooking  the  street.  In  the 
gable  was  a  door,  and  from  this  door  a  crane  projected. 
The  lower  floor  was  a  basement  or  cellar.  The  first  floor 
was  given  up  to  the  shop.  Above  that  was  the  living 
room,  and  back  of  the  living  room  was  the  kitchen.  The 
floor  above  was  the  general  sleeping  room,  and  over  this 
was  the  great  garret.  This  was  used  as  a  storeroom,  and 
goods  were  lifted  to  it  by  means  of  the  crane  in  the  gable. 
Often  a  "  salesroom  "  was  merely  a  bench  under  a  porch. 
Here  whatever  the  workman  made  was  spread  out  for 
the  passers-by  to  see,  and  purchase  if  they  would.  Many 
signs  swung  over  the  street,  and  on  each  of  them  was 
painted  some  device  to  suggest  the  business  of  the  house. 
The  boar's  head  —  a  favorite  Christmas  dish  —  was 
often  adopted  as  a  tavern  sign.  The  pilgrims  in  Chau- 
cer's Canterbury  Tales  spent  the  night  at  the  Tabard 
Inn;  and  doubtless  this  had  a  wooden  sign  representing 
a  tabard,  or  sleeveless  jacket  worn  over  armor.  The  Fly- 
ing Horse  was  the  name  of  a  tavern  in  Canterbury,  and 
we  can  easily  guess  what  the  sign  must  have  been.  The 
ivy  was  sacred  to  Bacchus,  the  god  of  wine,  and  there- 
fore the  custom  arose  of  putting  a  spray  of  vine  or  even 

214 


Life  in  Town 


SHOPS    ON    THE    STREET 


215 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

a  green  bush  over  the  door  of  a  place  where  wine  was 
sold.  To  this  day  the  mortar  and  pestle  often  indicate 
an  apothecary's ;  the  shop  of  the  pawnbroker  is  marked 


A    MEDIAEVAL    HOTEL 


not  by  a  name,  but  by  three  golden  balls,  taken  from 
the  arms  of  the  Lombards,  the  first  great  money-lenders 
in  England  ;  and  the  twining  stripes  of  the  barber's  pole 
signify  either  the  flowing  blood  or  the  bandages  used  in 

2l6 


Life  in  Town 

bleeding,  for  in  early  times  the  barbers  were  also  the 
bleeders. 

The  streets  in  mediaeval  days  were  narrow  and,  ex- 
cept in  made-to-order  towns,  they  were  crooked  and 
rambling.  The  upper  stories  of  the  houses  often  pro- 
jected so  far  over  them  that  opposite  neighbors  could 
almost  shake  hands  from  their  windows.  In  front,  the 


A    MEDIAEVAL    GARDEN    SCENE 

217 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

houses  must  have  been  rather  gloomy,  but  back  of  them 
there  were  usually  gardens,  which  must  have  been  a 
great  delight  to  the  good  folk  of  the  time;  for  they 
not  only  walked  in  them,  but  played  chess  and  danced 
and  ate  their  dinners  in  them.  In  England,  lilies  and 
roses  seem  to  have  been  the  favorite  flowers ;  but  mari- 
golds, poppies,  violets,  and  foxgloves  were  often  seen. 
Many  plants  were  cultivated  as  medicines,  among  them 
sage,  mallows,  and  nightshade.  In  the  vegetable  gar- 
dens there  were  lettuce,  cresses,  onions,  melons,  cucum- 
bers, and  beets.  Apples  and  pears  were  common,  and 
cherries  seem  to  have  been  well  known  and  general 
favorites.  Every  year,  when  the  cherries  were  ripe, 
feasts  or  fairs  were  held  in  the  orchards,  which  were 
called  cherry  fairs.  People  seemed  never  to  weary  of 
trying  experiments  on  the  cherry  tree.  An  old  book  on 
gardening  declared  that  grapes  could  be  made  to  ripen 
as  early  as  cherries.  This  is  the  way  it  was  to  be  done : 
A  grapevine  must  be  set  out  beside  a  cherry  tree ;  and 
after  it  was  growing  thriftily,  it  must  be  drawn  through 
a  hole  bored  through  the  tree.  The  bark  of  the  vine 
was  to  be  cut  away  from  the  part  that  went  through 
the  tree,  and  the  hole  must  be  completely  filled.  After 
a  year  had  passed,  the  vine  was  supposed  to  be  so  much 

2l8 


Life  in  Town 

at  home  in  the  tree  that  its  own  roots  might  be  cut  off, 
and  it  would  find  its  food  in  the  sap  of  the  cherry.  It 
was  a  faithful  monk  who  gave  this  recipe;  but  one  can- 
not help  wondering  whether  he  had  ever  tested  it  or 
only  reasoned  it  out  in  his  cell;  and  whether,  even  if 
it  was  a  success  in  the  fifteenth  century,  the  daring  gar- 
dener who  ventured  to  try  it  in  the  twentieth  would 
not  come  to  grief.  Any  one  who  is  more  fond  of  pome- 
granates than  peaches  may  wish  to  try  another  recipe 
that  seems  to  have  been  in  good  standing  at  about  the 
same  time.  This  one  bade  that  when  the  peach-tree  was 
in  bloom,  it  should  be  sprinkled  with  goat's  milk  several 
times  a  day  for  three  days,  whereupon  it  would  not  fail 
to  produce  pomegranates.  Surely  this  was  a  far  simpler 
and  easier  method  than  grafting.  There  was  ample 
opportunity  for  even  the  Londoners  to  try  all  such  ex- 
periments; for,  besides  the  smaller  gardens  within  the 
city,  there  were  large  and  spacious  orchards  just  beyond 
the  walls  with  plenty  of  room  for  trees  of  all  sorts. 

Outside  the  city  wall  was  a  ditch  or  moat  two  hun- 
dred feet  broad.  This  was  dug  in  the  early  part  of  the 
thirteenth  century  as  a  means  of  fortification;  and  for 
many  years  it  was  kept  in  good  order.  At  length,  how- 
ever, it  became  so  foul  that  every  householder  in  Lon- 

219 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

don  was  taxed  fivepence,  the  price  of  a  day's  work,  to 
help  pay  for  cleaning  it  out.  More  agreeable  waters 
abounded  on  the  north  side  of  the  city;  for  there  lay 
pastures  and  meadow  land  rich  in  springs  and  streams. 
The  springs  were  all  named,  and  a  number  of  them 
were  walled  in.  Richard  Whittington,  the  hero  of  the 
nursery  tale,  "  thrice  lord  mayor  of  London,"  left 
money  to  build  a  stone  coping  about  one  of  them.  In 
the  thirteenth  century  water  was  brought  into  the  city 
in  lead  pipes,  "  for  the  poor  to  drink,  and  the  rich  to 
dress  their  meat."  In  the  clear  streams  the  mill-wheels 
turned  merrily  about,  and  the  crops  grew  abundantly  in 
the  fertile  soil. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century  a  law  was 
passed  that  the  lower  parts  of  houses  at  least  should  be 
built  of  stone  and  the  roofs  should  be  covered  with  slate 
or  tile.  This  was  to  prevent  destruction  by  fire.  William 
Fitzstephen,  clerk  of  Thomas  a  Becket,  archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  wrote  an  account  of  London  in  his  time, 
the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century,  and  he  says  that 
"  the  only  pests  of  London  are  the  immoderate  drinking 
of  fools  and  the  frequency  of  fires."  Some  years  later, 
a  man  built  a  house  with  a  lofty  tower  of  brick,  which 
seems  to  have  greatly  annoyed  the  Londoners.  They 

22O 


Life  in  Town 


looked  upon  it  as  manifesting  a  desire  on  the  part  of  the 
owner  to  show  himself  superior  to  his  neighbors ;  and 
folk  thought  that  the  blindness  which  came  upon  him 
was  a  deserved 
punishment  for  his 
pride.  The  second 
house  that  was  built 
with  a  tower  "to 
overlook  neigh- 
bors'* was  reared 
by  a  young  tailor. 
The  poor  young 
man  was  soon  at- 
tacked by  gout  and 
was  not  able  to 
climb  his 


own 

stairs;  and  this  was 
rather  uncharitably 
regarded  as  a  judg- 
ment come  upon 

him.  It  is  possible  that  the  next  owner  of  this  house 
did  not  venture  to  retain  the  tower;  for  the  record 
says  "he  new  buildeth  it."  No  historian  has  handed 
down  the  name  of  the  person  who  built  the  third  tower, 

221 


A    TOWN    HOUSE 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

but  it  must  have  been  a  man  of  unbounded  fearlessness 
and  audacity. 

Even  stonebuilt  houses  were  not  places  of  safety  in 
the  troublous  times  of  the  twelfth  century.  It  was  a 
common  practice  for  bands  of  wealthy  young  men  to 
roam  the  streets  at  night,  killing  any  one  whom  they 
chanced  to  meet  and  breaking  into  houses.  One  of 
these  fashionable  ruffians  was  finally  captured.  He 
offered  the  king  five  hundred  pounds  of  silver  to  let 
him  go  free;  but  the  king  commanded  him  to  be  hanged, 
and  for  a  long  while  citizens  slept  more  peacefully. 

One  convenience  of  the  city  Fitzstephen  felt  to  be  the 
very  height  of  luxury.  This  was  a  cookshop  on  the  bank 
of  the  river.  He  says  that  if  unexpected  visitors  arrived, 
their  host  could  slip  down  to  the  river  bank,  and  there 
he  would  find  fish,  fowl,  and  meat,  fried,  roasted,  or 
boiled,  as  he  would,  to  carry  to  his  hungry  guests.  Fitz- 
stephen had  unlimited  confidence  in  the  resources  of  this 
cookshop,  for  he  declared  that,  no  matter  how  great  a 
multitude  of  soldiers  or  travelers  entered  the  city  at  any 
hour  of  the  day  or  night,  they  could  be  quickly  served 
with  all  the  delicacies  of  the  season.  Either  the  "  mul- 
titude "  of  the  Middle  Ages  was  not  so  very  large,  or 
this  really  was  a  most  remarkable  cookshop. 

222 


Life  in  Town 

London  had  many  churches,  and  it  was  well  supplied 
with  hospitals.  These  latter  were  for  the  blind  or  poor 
or  insane  or  for  lepers.  Richard  Whittington  endowed 
an  almshouse  which  he  called  "  God's  House/'  for  thir- 
teen poor  men.  Thirteen  was  a  favorite  number  in  chari- 
ties ;  but  often  there  were  restrictions  far  more  whimsical 
than  this.  At  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  some- 
what later  than  the  Middle  Ages,  King  Henry  VII  en- 
dowed a  home  for  thirteen  poor  men.  One  must  be  a 
priest,  forty-five  years  old  and  a  "good  grammarian." 
The  other  twelve  men  were  to  be  fifty  years  of  age  and 
without  wives.  Every  Saturday  as  long  as  they  lived,  the 
priest  was  to  receive  fourpence  a  day  for  his  food.  The 
others,  who  perhaps  were  not  so  good  grammarians,  were 
to  receive  only  twopence-half-penny  a  day.  Every  year 
each  man  was  given  a  gown  and  hood.  The  charge  of 
the  house,  the  cooking,  and  the  care  of  the  poor  men  in 
illness  was  put  into  the  hands  of  three  women,  each  of 
whom  was  to  receive  one  gown  each  year  and  sixteen 
pence  every  Saturday.  Coal  and  wood  were  provided ; 
and  it  was  ordered  that  "a  discreet  monk,"  who  was  to 
be  paid  forty  shillings  a  year,  but  was  to  receive  no  gown, 
should  be  overseer  of  all. 

Many  persons  of  wealth  gave  away  food  in  large  quan- 

223 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

titles.  One  kind-hearted  bishop  had  every  week  more 
than  two  hundred  pounds  of  wheat  made  into  bread  to 
give  to  the  poor.  One  of  the  archbishops  of  Canterbury 
gave  on  Fridays  and  Sundays  a  loaf  of  bread  to  every 
beggar  who  came -to  his  gates  ;  and  sometimes  there  were 
five  thousand  of  them.  To  people  who  were  too  sick  or 
too  feeble  to  come,  he  sent  meat,  bread,  and  drink,  and 
often  money  and  clothes.  One  of  the  oddest  of  charitable 
whims  was  that  of  Henry  III  in  the  twelfth  century. 
Soon  after  the  close  of  the  Christmas  season,  all  the  poor 
and  needy  boys  and  girls  that  could  be  found  were 
brought  into  a  great  hall  and  made  comfortable  before  a 
big  fire.  Soon  they  saw  a  rare  and  wonderful  sight,  for 
the  king's  children,  the  princes  and  princesses,  were  led 
into  the  room.  These  royal  youngsters  were  carefully 
weighed,  and  a  quantity  of  food  equal  to  their  weight 
was  distributed  among  their  hungry  guests. 

There  seems  to  have  been  a  good  supply  of  schools  in 
London,  for  in  the  twelfth  century  there  were  three  espe- 
cially notable  and  also  a  number  of  lesser  fame.  These 
were  connected  with  churches,  and  upon  festival  days 
people  flocked  to  their  doors  to  listen  to  the  boys.  The 
good  folk  of  that  time  believed  that  the  surest  proof  of  a 
pupil's  diligence  and  talent  was  his  ability  to  argue ;  and 

224 


Life  in  Town 

on  these  occasions  the  boys  did  their  best  to  get  the  bet- 
ter of  one  another  in  argument.  The  listeners  watched 
eagerly  to  see  who  used  good,  clear,  logical  reasoning, 
who  manifested  skill  in  persuasion,  and  who  spoke  flow- 
ingly,  with  a  lavish  supply  of  words,  but  with  few  gen- 
uine arguments.  After  the  more  serious  part  of  the  pro- 
gramme had  come  to  an  end,  the  boys  had  a  bout  of 
capping  verses,  in  Latin  of  course,  and  contending  about 
the  rules  and  principles  of  grammar.  Then  came  an  hour 
of  vast  amusement ;  for  now  they  set  to  work  to  make 
witty  rhymes  and  speeches  about  one  another.  They  were 
not  allowed  to  mention  names ;  but  they  were  free  to  jest 
as  keenly  as  they  chose  about  one  another's  faults  and 
oddities,  "  nipping  and  quipping  their  fellows."  Long 
after  the  formal  school  exercises  in  the  churches  had  been 
given  up,  the  boys  used  to  go  to  Smithfield,  or  smooth 
field,  just  outside  the  city,  for  their  duels  of  argument. 
A  platform  had  been  built  up  under  a  tree,  and  upon 
this  a  boy  would  take  his  stand,  make  some  statement 
in  grammar  or  philosophy,  and  uphold  it  until  he  was 
argued  down  by  some  boy  of  keener  wit.  This  second 
boy  then  mounted  the  platform  and  upheld  some  state- 
ment of  his  own  choice  until  he,  too,  was  obliged  to 
yield.  At  the  close  of  the  arguing,  prizes  were  given  to 

225 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

those  who  had  done  best.  After  a  while  these  debates 
were  given  up ;  but  the  tradition  was  handed  down  by 
one  class  of  boys  to  another,  and  even  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  they  were  continued  in  a  fashion  that  perhaps 
entertained  the  boys  quite  as  much  as  the  more  formal 
displays  of  earlier  times.  The  most  famous  school  in  the 
thirteenth  century  was  that  of  the  cathedral  of  Saint 
Paul's.  Its  pupils  were  called  "  Paul's  pigeons  "  because 
many  pigeons  were  bred  about  the  church.  A  later,  but 
most  excellent  school,  was  that  of  Saint  Anthony's. 
There  was  a  legend  that  this  kind-hearted  saint  had  been 
followed  about  by  a  favorite  pig.  No  boy  would  forget 
that  story,  and  of  course  the  pupils  of  Saint  Anthony's 
were  nicknamed  "Anthony's  pigs."  When  a  company 
of  "Paul's  pigeons"  chanced  to  meet  some  of  "An- 
thony's pigs  "  in  the  street,  some  boy  from  one  group 
was  sure  to  demand  of  the  other  group,  "  Will  you  hold 
an  argument  with  me?"  This  was  a  challenge  which 
could  not  be  slighted.  Some  question  in  Latin  grammar 
was  chosen,  and  the  contest  proceeded,  first  by  argument, 
but  before  long  by  blows  with  fists  and  satchels  of  books. 
The  challenge  was  always  made  in  Latin,  "  Salve  tu  quo- 
que,  placet  tibi  mecum  disputare  ? "  but  it  came  to  mean 
little  more  than  the  very  modern,  "  Hello,  want  to  fight?" 

226 


A    GAME    AT    BALL 


THE    GAME    OF    KALES 


WHIPPING-TOP 


227 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

But  the  amusements  of  London  were  not  limited  to 
Latin  contests  and  street  brawls.  On  Shrove  Tuesday  of 
each  year,  the  schoolboys  carried  game  cocks  to  school, 
and  all  the  forenoon  master  and  pupils  watched  them 
fight.  In  the  afternoon,  the  young  men  of  the  city  went 
to  the  ball  ground  to  play,  while  their  elders  cantered 
out  on  horseback  to  watch  the  game.  Every  Friday  in 
Lent  some  of  the  young  men  went  through  various 
manoeuvres  on  horseback,  and  others  with  shields  and 
blunted  lances  carried  on  a  mimic  war.  After  a  while 
this  was  given  up,  and  the  knights'  practice  with  the  quin- 
tain took  its  place.  Prizes  were  given  to  those  who  did 
best*  The  favorite  prize  was  a^pegcock.  At  Easter  time, 
the  banks  of  the  Thames,  the  wharves,  bridges,  and  houses 
were  filled  with  people  waiting  to  see  an  interesting  sort 
of  naval  contest.  A  pole  was  firmly  fixed  in  the  midst 
of  the  stream,  and  on  it  a  shield  was  hung.  The  young 
man  who  was  to  try  his  fate  took  his  position  with  lance 
in  hand  in  the  bow  of  a  little  boat  some  distance  above 
the  pole.  He  had  neither  oars  nor  paddle,  but  the  cur- 
rent filled  the  place  of  both,  for  a  time  was  always  chosen 
when  the  tide  was  going  out  rapidly.  The  feat  was  to 
charge  upon  the  shield  with  the  lance  and  not  lose  one's 
balance.  If  the  lance  did  not  break,  the  contestant  was 

228 


Life  in  Town 

sure  to  tumble  into  the  water.  The  unlucky  youth  was 
in  no  danger ;  for  on  each  side  of  the  shield  were  two 
boats  full  of  men  to  rescue  him ;  but  the  shouts  of  laugh- 
ter that  echoed  up  and  down  the  river  must  have  been 
worse  than  the  wetting.  All  summer  long  there  were 
sports  of  different  kinds,  such  as  leaping,  dancing,  wres- 
tling, shooting,  and  casting  the  stone.  When  winter  had 
come  and  the  flats  north  of  the  city  were  frozen,  then 
there  was  sliding  on  the  ice,  which  Fitzstephen  describes 
as  follows :  "  Some,  striding  as  wide  as  they  may,  do 
slide  swiftly."  Another  amusement  was  for  one  to  take 
his  seat  upon  a  cake  of  ice  "  as  big  as  a  millstone,"  while 
his  companions  took  hold  of  hands  and  drew  him  about. 
The  interesting  part  of  this  amusement  seemed  to  be  that 
the  "  horses  "  frequently  slipped  and  all  tumbled  down 
together.  Another  sport  was  evidently  a  forerunner  of 
skating.  Fitzstephen  describes  it  thus :  "  Some  tie  bones 
to  their  feet  and  under  their  heels ;  and  shoving  them- 
selves by  a  little  picked  staff,  do  slide  as  swiftly  as  a  bird 
flieth  in  the  air,  or  an  arrow  out  of  a  cross-bow."  One 
exercise  which  seems  to  have  been  required  of  the  young 
apprentices  was  to  practice  with  bucklers  and  "  wasters," 
or  blunt-edged  swords,  in  front  of  their  masters'  doors 
at  twilight.  The  girls  were  not  forgotten,  for  garlands 

229 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

were  hung  across  the  streets  as  prizes,  and  for  these  the 
maidens  danced  to  the  music  of  a  timbrel,  or  drum.  It 
is  a  pity  that  all  the  amusements  were  not  as  simple  and 
harmless  as  these  ;  but  the  cruel  and  revolting  cock  fight- 
ing as  well  as  bear  and  bull  baiting,  that  is,  muzzling 
and  tying  up  one  of  these  animals  to  be  attacked  by  dogs, 
were  not  given  up  even  after  people  became  in  many 
respects  far  more  enlightened  than  during  the  Middle 
Ages. 

In  Smithfield  there  was  held  every  Friday  except  on 
specially  holy  days  a  horse-market.  Everybody  went  to 
it,  earls  and  barons  and  knights  as  well  as  the  common 
citizens.  There  were  horses  broken  and  horses  unbroken, 
there  were  handsome,  graceful  amblers,  there  were  stead- 
fast trotters  for  men  at  arms,  and  there  were  strong,  sober 
steeds  for  the  plough  or  farm  wagon ;  there  were  pigs 
and  cows  and  sheep  and  oxen.  It  was  quite  allowable  to 
keep  as  many  pigs  as  one  chose  within  the  city ;  but  by 
the  fourteenth  century  the  Londoners  were  beginning  to 
feel  that  the  pigs  ought  not  to  be  permitted  to  roam  about 
the  streets  at  pleasure ;  and  the  stern  decree  was  passed 
that  whoever  kept  a  pig  must  feed  it  at  his  own  house ; 
that  is,  all  pigs  must  board  and  lodge  at  home.  Who- 
ever chanced  to  find  one  wandering  about  the  streets  of  the 

230 


Life  in  Town 

city,  had  a  right  to  kill  it ;  and  if  the  owner  wished  to 
have  the  carcass,  he  must  pay  fourpence  for  it.  Verily, 
as  honest  Fitzstephen  declared,  London  was  "  a  good  city 
indeed  "  when  it  had  a  good  master. 


CHAPTER   XI 


MERCHANT     GILDS    AND     CRAFT    GILDS 

IN  the  Middle  Ages  there  were  gilds,  or  societies,  for  all 
purposes.  There  were  gilds  to  mend  the  walls  and  bridges 

of  their  home  cities  and 
gilds  to  keep  certain  roads 
in  good  condition.  There 
were   gilds   of  minstrels 
and   gilds  of  ringers   of 
church    bells.    Indeed, 
there  were  so  many  vari- 
eties of  gild  that  one  al- 
most wonders  how  a  man 
ventured  to  light  his  fire 
in  the  morning  without 
belonging  to  a  gild  for  the 
kindling  of  hearth  fires. 
In  the  towns,  as  has  been  said  before,  almost  every 
citizen  had  something  to  do  with  manufactures  and  with 
trade.  Perhaps  his  manufacturing  was  only  making  can- 
dles in  his  own  home  and  selling  them  from  his  first 

232 


A    DRUGGIST 


Merchant  Gilds  and  Craft  Gilds 

floor;  but  even  then  it  was  an  important  matter  for  him 
to  get  his  wax  as  cheaply  as  the  other  candlemakers  of 
the  town.  He  was  interested,  too,  .in  having  his  prices 
and  those  of  the  others  of  his  trade  nearly  the  same ;  and 
he  did  not  wish  foreigners  or  even  people  from  other 
towns  to  come  in  and  spoil  his  sales.  It  was  for  these  rea- 
sons that  the  merchant  gilds  were  formed.  Probably  in 
earlier  times  all  or  nearly  all  of  the  citizens  of  a  town 
belonged  to  its  merchant  gild.  The  gildsmen  called  one 
another  brethren,  and  their  rules  bound  them  to  work 
together  and  help  one  another  as  much  as  possible.  The 
first  business,  then,  of  the  gild  in  a  town  was  to  look  out 
for  the  interests  of  its  merchants  and  tradesmen.  It  pre- 
vented strangers  from  coming  into  the  town  to  sell  any 
goods  unless  they  paid  tolls ;  and  even  then  they  were 
allowed  to  sell  only  certain  things  whose  sale  would  not 
interfere  with  the  interests  of  the  gildsmen.  In  many 
places,  no  foreign  merchant  was  allowed  to  remain  more 
than  forty  days,  and  during  this  time  he  must  dispose  of 
all  his  goods.  If  a  gildsman  became  poor  or  sick,  his  gild 
helped  him ;  if  in  time  of  peace  he  was  thrown  into 
prison,  his  gild  came  to  his  aid ;  at  his  death,  the  gild 
attended  his  funeral  and  in  many  cases  paid  for  masses 
for  the  repose  of  his  soul.  The  member  owed  various 

233 


- 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

duties  to  the  gild.  He  must  pay  his  dues  and  fines ;  and 
in  case  of  a  disagreement  between  him  and  another  mem- 
ber, he  must  submit  to  the  decision  of  the  gild.  He  must 
permit  the  officers  of  the  gild  to  examine  his  goods ;  and 
if  they  found  fault  with  their  quality  or  weight  or  meas- 
ure, he  must  obey  the  gild's  orders  and  mend  his  ways. 

These  merchant  gilds  often  became  very  wealthy  and 
powerful.  They  were  able  to  loan  large  sums  of  money ; 
and,  oddly  enough,  they  sometimes  loaned  it  to  them- 
selves. This  came  about  because,  although  the  gildsmen 
and  the  citizens  were  nearly  the  same  people,  they  were, 
nevertheless,  entirely  separate  bodies;  and  when  a  town 
wanted  to  borrow  money,  it  would  naturally  appeal  to 
the  gild  first  of  all.  In  many  cases,  a  gild  even  made 
bargains  with  the  king.  It  would  pay  the  king  the 
round  sum  that  he  demanded  from  the  city  in  taxation, 
and  then  it  was  entirely  free  from  him  in  money  mat- 
ters and  could  collect  the  amount  just  as  the  members 
thought  best. 

The  merchant  gild  was  of  aid  to  men  in  manufactur- 
ing goods,  as  has  been  said;  but  there  were  many  mat- 
ters of  importance  to  the  manufacturers,  or  craftsmen, 
which  the  merchant  gilds  did  not  touch.  To  begin  with, 
what  the  plasterers,  for  instance,  wanted  was  quite  dif- 

234 


Merchant  Gilds  and  Craft  Gilds 


ferent  from  what  the  shoemakers  wanted,  and  in  a 
town  where  many  trades  were  represented,  of  course  no 
one  gild  could  care  for  the  interests  of  all.  The  natural 
thing,  then,  was  for  the  men  of  each  craft  to  form  a 
gild  of  their  own.  This 
was  not  only  a  natural, 
but  also  an  easy  and  con- 
venient thing  to  do;  for 
those  who  practiced  the 
same  craft  generally  lived 
on  the  same  street,  or  at 
any  rate,  in  the  same 
quarter  of  the  town. 
These  newer  gilds  had 
two  special  objects.  The 
first  was  to  see  that  every 
member  had  work.  This 
was  brought  about  by 
limiting  the  number  of  apprentices  who  were  per- 
mitted to  learn  any  one  trade.  The  second  object  was 
to  make  sure  that  every  member's  work  was  good. 
Each  craftsman  was  obliged  to  allow  the  gild  officers  to 
examine  his  materials  and  his  work  both  in  the  making 
and  after  it  was  finished.  No  one  was  allowed  to  labor 

235 


AN  ARMORER 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

on  Saturday  afternoons,  Sundays,  or  holy  days.  Work- 
ing in  the  night  was  strictly  forbidden.  The  chief  rea- 
son probably  was  that  it  was  difficult  to  inspect  night 

work,  and  that  with  the 
poor  lights  then  used, 
few  articles  could  be  well 
made.  But  there  were 
often  other  reasons  given 
for  refusing  to  allow  it. 
For  instance,  in  the  town 
of  Lincoln,  England,  the 
spurriers'  gild  forbade  its 
members  to  work  longer 
than  from  daylight  to  cur- 
few, "by  reason  that  no 
man  can  work  so  neatly 
by  night  as  by  day."  But  the  decree  went  on  to  say  fur- 
thermore that  if  the  spurriers  were  allowed  to  work  at 
night,  they  would  idle  about  all  day  and  get  "  drunk 
and  frantic/'  Then,  when  night  had  come,  they  would 
blow  up  their  fires  and  seize  their  tools ;  although  the 
fires  were  a  peril  to  the  houses  and  the  noise  was  a  great 
annoyance  to  the  sick,  and  so  became  the  cause  of  m^.nv 
quarrels. 

236 


A    SPURRIER 


Merchant  Gilds  and' Craft  Gilds 


The  craft  gilds  looked  out  for  the  interests  of  their 
members  in  much  the  same  ways  as  the  merchant  gilds ; 
that  is,  they  cared  for  them  in  illness,  attended  their 
funeral  services,  paid  for  masses  for  the  repose  of  their 
souls,  and  helped  their  widows  and  orphans.  It  was  the 
business  of  the  gild  to  settle,  if  possible,  any  disputes 
that  might  arise  between  members.  Sometimes  there 
were  disputes  between  gilds.  The  work  of  each  craft 
was  strictly  marked  off. 
A  man  who  made  shoes 
must  not  mend  them ; 
and  a  man  whose  busi- 
ness it  was  to  mend  shoes 
was  not  allowed  to  make 
them.  A  man  who  made 
hats  for  his  trade  was  for- 
bidden to  make  caps.  If 
one  craft  did  any  work 
that  another  craft  claimed 
as  its  own,  then  there  was 
trouble.  For  instance, 
a  disagreement  of  this  sort  arose  between  the  farriers 
and  the  blacksmiths  of  York  in  England.  For  many 
years  "  ayther  craft  trubled  other."  At  length,  the 

237 


A    SHOEMAKER 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

mayor  persuaded  them  to  allow  the  matter  to  be  settled 

by  four  men  whom  he  would  appoint  from  other  crafts. 

Everything  was  done  to  induce  the  members  of  a  gild 

to  treat  the  other  members  like  brothers,  and  if  any  one 

tried  to  get  the  better 
of  the  rest  in  buying 
material,  especially  for 
things  necessary  to  life, 
like  bread,  before  the 
others  could  have  the 
same  chance,  or  by 
purchasing  all  that  was 
for  sale  and  then  charg- 
ing a  higher  price,  he 
was  likely  to  get  into 
trouble  with  his  gild 
officers. 

Every  gild   had  its 


A    BLACKSMITH 


^  feast  day  once  a  year  or 

oftener;  and  every  gild  had  also  its  patron  saint.  On  the 
day  sacred  to  him  all  the  members  put  on  the  gild  livery, 
or  uniform,  and  marched  from  their  gild  hall  to  the 
church  for  services.  Another  religious  duty  of  the  craft 
gilds  was  the  acting  of  plays,  mystery  or  miracle  plays, 

238 


Merchant  Gilds  and  Craft  Gilds 

as  they  were  called.  Long  before  the  Middle  Ages,  the 
priests  in  various  countries  often  acted  stories  from  the 
Bible,  such  as  that  of  the  birth  of  Christ,  in  order  to 
impress  them  upon  the  minds  of  the  people.  These  were 
acted  in  the  church,  then  on  platforms  in  the  church- 
yard. But  so  many  came  to  see  them  that  the  graves  were 
trampled  upon,  and  it  was  decreed  that  they  should  be 
acted  on  other  ground. 

These  plays  did  not  always  follow  the  Bible  narrative 
strictly,  but  added  old  legends  or  any  incidents  that  it 
was  thought  would  interest  the  people.  For  instance,  in 
one  of  the  plays  of  The  Garden  of  Eden,  when  Adam 
took  the  apple,  he  apparently  tried  to  swallow  it  whole, 
for  the  play  says  that  it  stuck  in  his  throat,  causing 
the  "  Adam's  apple."  In  the  play  of  The  Slaughter  of 
the  Innocents,  an  old  tradition  is  brought  in  that  by 
mistake  Herod's  own  baby  son  was  slain.  In  the  play  of 
The  Shepherds,  the  honest  men  talk  together  about  how 
to  care  for  their  sheep.  They  sit  down  and  eat  their 
supper  —  bread,  butter,  pudding,  "  onyans,  garlicke,  and 
leickes,"  green  cheese,  and  a  sheep's  head  soused  in  oil 
—  "  a  noble  supper,"  as  one  of  them  calls  it.  After  sup- 
per, masters  and  boys  are  wrestling  together  when  a 
bright  star  blazes  out.  They  kneel  down  and  pray  to  God 

239 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  tell  them  why  it  is  sent.  Then  the  angel  Gabriel  ap- 
pears to  them  and  sings,  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest, 
and  on  earth  peace,  good  will  toward  men."  This  is 
sung  in  Latin  of  course,  for  it  would  not  have  seemed 
to  a  writer  of  the  Middle  Ages  at  all  respectful  to  repre- 
sent an  angel  as  singing  in  English.  The  shepherds 
have  a  rather  hard  time  with  the  Latin ;  but  they  make 
out  some  of  the  words.  They  talk  about  the  singing. 
One  of  them  says  of  the  angel,  "  He  hade  a  moche  bet- 
ter voyce  than  I  have."  Then  they  sing  together  "  a 
merye  songe."  The  angel  appears  again  and  tells  them 
that  Christ  is  born  in  Bethlehem.  After  they  have  gone 
to  find  him,  the  three  shepherd  boys  set  out  to  follow 
their  masters.  They  wish  that  they  had  something  to 
carry  to  the  Child,  but  they  have  only  the  few  things 
that  they  use  themselves.  One,  therefore,  gives  the 
Child  his  water  bottle,  which  he  says  is  good,  only  it 
needs  a  stopper.  The  second  takes  off  his  own  hood  for 
a  gift,  and  the  third  presents  him  with  a  nuthook  "  to 
pull  down  aples,  peares,  and  plumes." 

In  almost  all  of  these  plays  there  was  considerable 
fun-making  and  "horse-play."  Just  as  the  good  folk 
of  the  Middle  Ages  saw  no  harm  in  making  a  pilgrim- 
age a  merry  and  entertaining  little  journey,  so  in  the 

240 


Merchant  Gilds  and  Craft  Gilds 

mystery  plays  they  demanded  to  be  amused  as  well  as 
instructed.  In  the  play  of  The  Flood,  Noah's  wife  is  in- 
dignant that  her  husband  has  worked  on  the  ark  so 
many  years  without  telling  her.  She  declares  that  she 
will  not  enter  it,  and  she  finally  has  to  be  dragged  in  by 
Noah  and  his  sons.  Herod  struts  about  the  stage.  He 
boasts  how  mighty  a  king  he  is  and  how  easily  he  can 
destroy  the  Child  who  has  been  born  in  Bethlehem. 
Then  there  must  have  been  loud  guffaws  of  laughter 
from  the  audience  when  the  Devil  rushed  in  and  car- 
ried him  off.  Satan  was  the  clown,  the  fun-maker ;  and 
whenever  he  appeared,  the  people  watched  eagerly  to 
see  him  fooled  and  cheated  by  some  good  spirit.  He 
always  wore  a  dress  of  leather,  ending  in  claws  at  the 
fingers  and  toes.  The  souls  of  the  good  were  dazzling 
in  their  white  coats,  while  the  wicked  were  robed  in 
black  and  yellow  with  sometimes  a  touch  of  crimson. 
When  Satan  and  his  evil  spirits  made  their  appearance, 
they  came  by  way  of  "  hell  mouth."  This  was  a  great 
pair  of  gaping  jaws  made  of  painted  linen  and  worked 
by  two  men.  A  fire  was  lighted  to  look  as  if  hell  mouth 
were  full  of  flame.  Some  of  the  items  on  the  old  ex- 
pense accounts  are  amusing  reading.  "  For  the  mend- 
ing of  hell  mouth,"  for  "keeping  up  the  fire  at  hell 

241 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

mouth/'  sound  rather  alarming.  One  item  was  for  a 
barrel  to  make  an  earthquake,  another  was  for  a  beard 
for  Saint  Peter,  and  yet  another  for  a  quart  of  wine  to 
pay  for  hiring  a  gown  for  the  wife  of  Herod. 


HELL    MOUTH 


Long  before  the  plays  became  so  elaborate  as  to  de- 
mand so  many  "  properties,"  they  passed  into  the  hands 
of  the  craft  gilds.  In  the  early  part  of  the  thirteenth 
century,  most  of  the  gilds  fixed  upon  Corpus  Christi 

242 


Merchant  Gilds  and  Craft  Gilds 

day  for  their  chief  celebration.  They  marched  in  pro- 
cession, carrying  sacred  pictures  and  images  of  the  saints. 
Often  members  of  the  gild  took  the  parts  of  Bible  char- 
acters, and  at  length  whole  Bible  stories  were  acted. 
These  were  played  in  pageants,  or  great  lumbering 
wagons  two  or  three  stories  high.  The  lower  part  was 
covered  by  a  curtain,  and  here  the  actors  dressed.  The 
second  floor  was  the  stage  upon  which  the  acting  took 
place.  The  third  floor,  if  there  was  one,  represented 
heaven.  An  attempt  was  made  to  have  each  scene  as 
realistic  as  possible ;  for  instance,  the  stage  directions 
for  the  play  of  The  Creation  ordered  that  as  many  ani- 
mals as  could  be  obtained  should  be  suddenly  let  loose. 
Each  gild  had  its  own  special  play.  One  would  play 
The  Three  Kings,  another  The  Crucifixion,  another  The 
Murder  of  Abel,  and  so  on.  In  England  they  were  so 
arranged  that  the  main  stories  of  the  Bible  were  played 
in  the  Bible  order,  beginning  with  The  Creation  and 
ending  with  The  Last  Judgment.  Early  in  the  morning, 
the  ponderous  pageants  were  dragged  out  to  the  differ- 
ent streets  of  the  town.  Sometimes  men  of  means  paid 
a  good  price  to  have  them  stop  in  front  of  their  houses. 
As  soon  as  a  play  had  been  acted,  each  one  moved  on 
and  acted  the  same  play  in  another  place.  This  was 

243 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

usually  continued  through  three  days,  and  a  person  who 
remained  in  one  place  could  see  the  whole  cycle  of 
plays;  while  if  he  cared  to  see  any  one  of  them  repeated, 
he  had  only  to  follow  the  pageant  to  the  next  street. 

The  plays  were  entertaining,  and  that  was  reason 
enough  for  bringing  together  a  good  audience.  More- 
over, to  attend  them  was  thought  to  be  particularly 
good  for  one's  soul ;  and  to  do  something  religious  and 
be  entertained  while  doing  it,  was  regarded  by  the 
good  folk  of  the  Middle  Ages  as  a  most  excellent  ar- 
rangement. 

As  for  the  gilds,  at  first  they  looked  upon  presenting 
these  plays  as  an  honor  and  also  a  religious  privilege. 
They  chose  the  actors  from  their  members,  and  paid 
them  in  proportion  to  the  length  of  their  speeches  and 
the  amount  of  stage  "  business  "  for  which  they  were 
responsible.  In  the  play  of  St.  Peter,  in  Coventry,  the 
man  who  did  the  crowing  was  paid  fourpence;  but 
when  he  also  attended  to  the  hanging  of  Judas,  he 
received  tenpence  more.  The  gild  had  to  pay  these 
charges,  buy  costumes  and  keep  them  in  order,  and  pro- 
vide provisions  for  the  actors  at  rehearsals.  It  is  true 
that  collections  were  taken  up  in  the  streets  to  help  pay 
expenses,  but  the  burden  was  still  a  heavy  one.  Then, 

244 


245 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

too,  trades  changed  with  the  changing  fashions.  Some- 
times one  trade  was  divided  into  two.  In  1492  the 
blacksmiths  and  bladesmiths  in  a  town  separated.  This 
resulted  in  two  weak  gilds  instead  of  one  strong  one,  and 
the  whole  expense  of  a  pageant  was  a  serious  tax  to 
each.  As  time  passed,  the  gilds  made  strenuous  objec- 
tions to  keeping  up  the  plays,  but  now  the  law  stepped 
in  and  in  many  towns  they  were  required  to  produce 
their  pageants  or  else  pay  a  large  fine. 

As  the  craft  gilds  became  more  numerous  and  power- 
ful, the  merchant  gilds  lost  in  power  and  slowly  died 
away.  The  craft  gilds,  too,  weakened  with  changes  in 
methods  of  manufacture,  and  most  of  these  also  disap- 
peared. In  London,  a  number  of  gilds  still  exist;  but 
the  procession  which  takes  place  whenever  a  Lord 
Mayor  is  to  be  inducted  into  office  is  the  last  reminder 
of  the  old  trade  pageants. 


CHAPTER   XII 

How  GOODS  WERE  SOLD 

AFTER  a  man  had  manufactured  something,  shoes  or 
caps  or  saddles  or  swords,  as  the  case  might  be,  after  his 
gild  had  declared  that  the  material  was  good  and  that 
the  articles  were  well  made,  the  next  question  was  how 
to  dispose  of  them. 

If  he  lived  in  a  large  town,  he  could  sell  many  goods 
to  the  people  of  the  town  from  the  bench  in  front  of 
his  house.  As  has  been  said,  the  people  of  one  craft 
lived  near  together ;  and  if  any  one  wanted  a  sword,  for 
instance,  he  went  to  the  street  of  the  sword-makers ;  if 
he  wanted  some  cloth,  he  went  to  the  street  of  the 
drapers.  For  bread,  he  visited  the  pestours,  for  saddles 
the  sellers ,  and  for  fish  the  pessoners.  If  he  needed  to  have 
a  window  glazed,  he  called  upon  the  verrours.  If  he  in- 
tended to  indulge  himself  in  a  new  suit  of  clothes,  he 
went  to  the  place  of  the  talliaunders  to  give  his  order ; 
but  if  he  purposed  only  to  have  his  old  ones  repaired,  he 
went  to  the  quarters  of  the  dubbers. 

Many  goods  were  sold  in  the  country,  at  castles,  cot- 

247 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

tages,  convents,  and  manor  houses,  by  pedlars  who 
roamed  about  the  land.  They  packed  their  merchandise 
into  bundles  or  boxes  and  slung  them  over  a  horse  or  a 
mule.  They  carried  all  sorts  of  articles  for  a  house  or 
a  wardrobe,  such  as  caps,  hats,  girdles,  gloves,  purses, 
pewter  pots,  hoods  for  men,  headdresses  for  women, 
and  even  musical  instruments.  These  pedlars  must  have 
been  a  great  convenience  to  the  people  who  could 
not  come  to  town ;  but  they  did  not  bear  a  very  good 
reputation  for  honesty.  There  is  an  old  picture  that 
the  folk  of  the  time  must  have  enjoyed.  It  represents 
a  pedlar  sound  asleep  beside  a  tree,  while  three  mon- 
keys are  opening  his  pack  and  helping  themselves  to  its 
contents. 

Another  opportunity  to  dispose  of  goods  was  at  the  mar- 
kets which  were  held  in  many  towns  from  one  to  three 
times  a  week.  No  town  could  hold  a  market  without 
the  permission  of  the  king.  This  permission  was  a  valu- 
able gift,  for  every  one  wishing  to  sell  in  the  market  had 
to  pay  a  toll  unless  he  lived  in  the  town.  Sometimes  the 
king  "  gave  the  market "  to  an  abbey,  sometimes  to  a 
noble,  and  sometimes  to  the  town  itself.  Before  a  new 
market  could  be  established,  the  question  had  to  be  con- 
sidered whether  it  would  be  so  near  some  older  one  as  to 

248 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

lessen  its  tolls,  and  so  injure  the  "  owner/'  It  was  a  com- 
mon feeling  that  markets  should  be  not  more  than  six 


TRADES    ENTERING    A    TOWN 
(From  a  stained-glass  window) 


miles  apart,  in  order  that  people  might  walk  there,  sell 
or  buy  what  they  wished,  and  get  home  before  dark. 

249 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

When  market  day  had  come,  the  good  folk  from  all 
about  came  to  town  and  went  to  the  market-place.  This 
was  an  open  space  in  some  central  location.  Stalls  and 
booths  were  set  up  and  were  rented  by  some  of  the 
dealers  ;  others  sat  on  low  stools  with  baskets  of  eggs  or 
rolls  of  butter  or  live  poultry  in  front  of  them  and  waited 
for  customers.  In  the  market-place  a  cross  of  wood  or  stone 
was  usually  set  up ;  and  often  some  article  belonging  to 
the  king,  such  as  a  glove,  hat,  sword,  or  shield,  was  put 
upon  it  to  show  to  all  people  that  the  spot  was  under 
the  special  protection  of  the  sovereign.  In  some  towns 
on  the  Continent  huge  stone  figures  were  reared  called 
Rolands,  perhaps  from  Charlemagne's  famous  knight  of 
that  name.  Each  Roland  bore  the  sword  of  justice;  and 
the  threat  was  more  than  an  empty  show,  for  whoever 
committed  any  offense  during  market  time  had  to  pay 
not  only  the  usual  penalty,  but  also  a  good-sized  fine. 

Every  market  had  a  court  of  its  own  to  decide  the 
disagreements  that  are  sure  to  arise  where  many  people 
are  buying  and  selling.  It  was  composed  of  merchants, 
and  was  called  the  court  of  pie-powder,  or  more  properly, 
pieds-poudres,  that  is,  the  court  of  "  dusty  feet,"  because 
when  any  dispute  arose,  the  disputants  came  before  this 
court  at  once,  even  with  thdr  feet  dusty  from  their  jour- 

250 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

ney.  Each  one  told  his  story,  and  the  matter  was  promptly 
settled.  This  court  was  held  in  a  hut  or  booth  called  a 


PAYING    TOLL 


tollbooth,  that  is,  a  booth  for  collecting  tolls.  Usually  a 
better  building  was  put  up  for  the  court  after  a  while ; 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  this  became  the  town  prison,  or  perhaps  even  the 
town  hall. 

The  tolls  were  of  so  many  kinds  that  one  wonders 
how  the  traders  could  have  made  money  enough  from 
their  sales  to  pay  them  all.  If  a  man  who  was  not  a  citi- 
zen of  the  market  town  wished  to  sell  fish,  for  instance, 
in  the  market,  he  must  first  pay  a  toll  for  each  load  — 
cart-load,  horse-load,  or  man-load  —  that  he  brought  in. 
For  the  board  on  which  his  fish  were  laid  for  sale  he 
paid  a  rent  of  one  farthing  a  day  ;  and  every  cart-load  on 
the  board  was  also  taxed  one  penny. 

After  a  while  little  shops  were  opened  in  the  towns ; 
but  they  had  only  a  narrow  variety  of  articles.  Most  of 
the  towns  were  so  small  that  it  did  not  pay  traders  to 
bring  very  many  goods  of  a  kind  or  to  come  long  dis- 
tances even  for  market  days  ;  and  those  who  needed  large 
quantities  or  articles  from  other  countries  fared  poorly 
at  the  markets.  But  on  one  occasion  people  did  gather 
in  great  numbers,  and  that  was  on  pilgrimages.  On  the 
special  saint's  day  of  any  famous  shrine,  thousands  came 
together.  The  wideawake  merchants  were  not  slow  in 
finding  this  out,  and  in  bringing  goods  of  all  sorts  to 
such  places.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  famous  fairs 
that  were  held  in  every  country  in  Europe. 

252 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

For  these  fairs  merchants  at  first  put  up  simple  booths 
of  green  branches  in  the  churchyards,  and  there  sold 
their  goods.  This  was  soon  forbidden,  but  they  were 
allowed  to  establish  themselves  outside  the  towns.  Fairs 
soon  began  to  be  held  at  other  places  than  shrines ;  but 
it  was  always  necessary  to  choose  a  location  that  could 
be  reached  either  by  good  roads  or  by  water-ways. 

The  right  to  hold  a  fair  had  to  be  obtained  from  the 
king.  This  was  an  exceedingly  valuable  privilege  ;  for  of 
course  the  tolls  were  much  greater  than  those  received 
from  a  market.  The  king  usually  gave  this  right  to  some 
favored  nobleman,  to  an  abbey,  or  a  hospital.  If  a  town 
had  been  burned  or  had  met  with  any  other  serious  mis- 
fortune, their  sovereign  did  not  need  to  draw  upon  his 
treasure  for  a  contribution ;  he  simply  granted  the  town 
a  permit  to  hold  a  fair.  These  permits  were  very  defi- 
nite. They  stated  not  only  whether  the  fair  might  be 
held  once,  twice,  three  times,  or  four  times  a  year,  but 
even  the  number  of  days  that  it  was  allowed  to  remain 
open.  Another  privilege  of  value  was  that  during  fair 
time  the  shops  in  the  neighboring  towns  were  ordered 
to  be  closed  ;  and  if  these  were  market  towns,  it  was  for- 
bidden to  hold  a  market  until  the  fair  was  over.  This 
was  not  so  unjust  as  it  might  appear,  for  the  merchants 

253 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

could  bring  their  goods  to  the  fair  and  probably  make 
much  larger  sales  than  if  they  had  remained  in  their 
shops.  They  had  to  pay  tolls,  to  be  sure,  and  occasion- 
ally a  close-fisted  trader  would  avoid  the  entrance  fees 
by  working  his  way  into  the  fair  enclosure  much  as  the 
bad  boy  of  the  storybooks  gets  under  the  circus  tent. 
Most  people  who  sold  also  purchased ;  and  as  a  general 
thing,  dealers  felt  that  their  toll-money  was  well  spent, 
for  at  fairs  weights  and  measures  were  so  carefully  tested 
that  there  was  far  less  chance  of  being  cheated.  There 
was  also  another  protection  for  the  buyer :  if  he  discov- 
ered that  he  had  been  tricked  by  some  merchant,  the 
laws  of  the  fair  held  not  only  the  one  man,  but  all  the 
merchants  from  his  home  town  responsible  for  the 
amount ;  and  the  goods  of  any  of  them  could  be  seized 
to  make  the  buyer  whole. 

When  a  fair  was  to  be  held,  streets  were  laid  out  and 
lined  with  wooden  or  canvas  booths.  People  of  one 
trade  were  usually  on  the  same  street  or  row ;  and  there 
were  pewterers'  row,  tailors'  row,  and  others.  The  day 
before  the  fair  was  to  open,  officers  of  the  person  or 
hospital  or  church  that  owned  the  fair  went  about  the 
town  declaring  its  rules.  Every  merchant  must  be  in 
his  place  at  a  certain  time  unless  he  had  been  delayed 

254 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

by  a  storm  at  sea,  by  some  accident,  or  by  robbers. 
There  was  danger  of  robbers  everywhere ;  for  the  noble 
in  his  castle  often  demanded  "  toll "  of  any  merchant 
who  passed  near  his  stronghold.  This  really  meant  that 
the  noble  and  his  followers  dashed  out  upon  any  mer- 
chant who  was  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  obliged  to  go  by 
his  castle.  The  merchant  lost  his  goods  and  counted 
himself  in  luck  if  he  did  not  lose  his  life.  The  officers 
also  announced  that  disagreements  would  be  settled  by 
the  court  of  pieds-poudres,  and  that  nothing  could  be 
sold  within  several  miles  of  the  fair,  but  whoever  had 
anything  to  dispose  of  must  bring  it  within  the  gates. 
They  proclaimed  how  strong  the  wine  and  ale  must  be 
and  how  much  the  loaves  of  bread  must  weigh.  These 
officers  tested  the  weights  and  measures.  If  any  false 
ones  were  discovered,  they  were  burned,  and  the  owners 
were  obliged  to  pay  fines. 

It  was  forbidden  to  make  any  sale  until  the  fair  was 
opened  ;  but  when  the  hour  had  come,  a  trumpet  was 
blown  as  a  signal,  and  trade  began  at  once.  There  were 
swarms  of  people  from  town  and  country.  There  were 
merchants  from  distant  lands,  there  were  knights  and 
ladies  and  peasants,  there  were  jesters  and  jugglers  and 
minstrels.  Stewards  of  large  abbeys  were  there  to  lay  in 

255 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

a  year's  supply  of  salt,  spices,  wine,  fur,  and  linen ;  and 
humbler  folk  were  there  to  buy  the  few  little  dainties 
that  would  be  their  only  luxuries  for  the  year  to  come. 
Iron  goods,  tar,  gold,  cattle,  horses,  wool,  hides,  cloth, 
velvets,  ribbons,  silks,  satins,  hay,  grain,  glass,  copper, 
flax,  salt  fish,  wax,  tallow,  honey,  oil,  resin,  pitch,  tim- 
ber, armor  —  these  were  only  a  few  of  the  articles  that 
were  for  sale.  There  were,  too,  so  many  kinds  of  amuse- 
ments that  every  one  could  find  entertainment.  Jugglers 
did  their  sleight-of-hand  tricks;  minstrels  chanted  ro- 
mances; trained  bears  went  through  their  performances; 
cheap  jacks  sold  their  quack  medicines ;  wrestlers  showed 
their  strength  and  skill ;  and  dancers  balanced  themselves 
on  their  hands  rather  than  their  feet. 

Fairs  were  not  only  a  great  convenience  for  buyers 
and  sellers,  but  they  were  a  help  in  keeping  prices  steady. 
Small  quantities  of  goods  brought  into  a  town  would 
often  command  a  high  price,  because  there  might 
not  be  enough  for  all  that  wanted  them ;  but  if  the 
neople  knew  that  in  a  short  time  the  same  sort  of  goods 
would  be  for  sale  at  a  fair  near  at  hand  and  at  a  reason- 
able cost,  they  would  wait,  if  possible.  This  would 
lessen  the  demand  for  the  goods,  and  only  a  fair  price 
could  be  obtained. 

256 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

Fairs  were  held,  as  has  been  said,  throughout  Europe. 
The  journeys  of  the  crusaders  had  shown  what  comforts 


A    MARKET    SCENE 
(From  a  stained-glass  window) 


and  luxuries  there  were  in  the  world.  People  had  devel- 
oped new  tastes  and  they  made  new  demands.  They 

257 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

would  have  thought  themselves  ill-treated  indeed  if 
they  had  had  to  depend  upon  a  town  market  to  supply 
their  wants.  In  England,  the  largest  fair  was  that  of 
Stourbridge,  near  Cambridge.  Its  streets  and  booths  were 
spread  over  an  area  half  a  mile  square.  Some  of  these 
streets  were  named  for  the  trades  represented  and  others 
for  the  nations  represented.  Stourbridge  fair  lasted  a 
month,  and  during  this  time  there  were  immense  sales 
of  both  English  and  foreign  productions.  Two  seaports 
specially  liked  by  merchants  on  the  Continent  were  near 
Stourbridge,  and  vessels  came  in  by  scores  loaded  with 

*  V  % 

foreign  goods.  Italy  sent  silks  «and  velvets,  arid  glass  of 
her  own  manufacture,  arid  also  cotton,  spices,  and  manu- 

IK  ^  *.       *  *\       •        *  •  *    • 

factured  articles  from  the  East'.  From  France  and  Spain 
came  quantities  of  wine.  Flemish  ships  brought  fine 
linen  and  woolen  cloth.  The  Hanseatic  League,  or  union 
of  German  towns  that  ruled  the  commerce  of  northern 
Europe,  brought  many  products  of  the  north,  such  as 
iron,  copper,  timber,  salt  fish,  and  meat,  furs,  grain, 
amber,  dried  herring,  resin,  and  pitch.  As  time  passed, 
the  business  of  the  League  spread  to  the  south  and  west, 
and  then  this  great  mercantile  union  brought  wine  and  oil 
and  salt  from  France  and  Spain  and  Portugal.  At  Stour- 
bridge the  League  merchants  bought  barley  for  the 

258 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

breweries  of  Flanders,  together  with  large  numbers  of 
horses  and  cattle.  Most  of  all,  however,  they  wanted 
wool  to  sell  to  the  various  towns  where  it  was  to  be 
woven  into  cloth.  England  raised  such  vast  quantities 
of  wool  that  its  sale  brought  in  large  amounts  of  money. 
It  was  looked  upon  as  an  important  source  of  the  coun- 
try's wealth,  and  to  this  day  when  the  Lord  Chancellor 
enters  the  House  of  Lords,  he  takes  his  seat  upon  a  large 
square  bag  of  wool  covered  with  red  cloth. 

Another  famous  English  fair  was  held  at  Winchester. 
This  dates  from  the  time  of  William  the  Conqueror. 
He  allowed  the  Bishop  of  Winchester  to  hold  it  for  one 
day  in  the  year ;  but  William's  greatgrandson,  Henry  II, 
allowed  it  to  be  held  for  sixteen  days.  Whoever  traveled 
on  a  road  leading  to  the  fair  or  crossed  a  bridge  had  to 
pay  toll.  The  fair  was  a  valuable  bit  of  property  in  those 
days;  but  its  chief  dependence  was  upon  the  sale  of 
wool.  This  sale  gradually  passed  to  the  eastern  ports, 
and  the  fair  dwindled  away. 

Often  fairs  became  noted  for  the  sale  of  some  one 
thing.  People  in  England  who  wanted  to  buy  geese  went 
to  Nottingham ;  those  who  wanted  to  enjoy  every  kind 
of  amusement  that  was  dear  to  the  folk  of  the  time 
could  hardly  wait  for  the  opening  of  the  Greenwich 

259 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

fair.  Probably  no  one  ever  made  a  long  journey  to  Bir- 
mingham expressly  to  buy  gingerbread  and  onions;  but 
those  were  certainly  the  two  articles  that  had  won  fame 
for  the  Birmingham  fair.  At  Smithfield,  where  the  Lon- 
doners went  for  their  sports,  St.  Bartholomew's  fair  was 
held.  This  was  famous  for  some  time  for  wool  and 
cloth.  Later,  the  chief  sales  were  of  wool  and  cattle. 
Gradually  the  character  of  the  fair  changed,  and  it  be- 
came simply  a  place  for  wild  and  rollicking  amusements. 

It  is  only  seventy  years  since  Saint  Bartholomew's 
fair  was  given  up ;  and  some  of  the  great  fairs  have  con- 
tinued to  this  day.  There  is  one  at  Beaucaire  in  France 
seven  hundred  years  old,  where  all  sorts  of  rare  mer- 
chandise may  still  be  found.  The  fair  of  Leipsic  in  Ger- 
many is  even  older.  It  has  a  most  excellent  location, 
because  it  is  so  central  that  it  can  be  easily  reached  from 
any  part  of  Europe.  It  is  still  held,  and  is  well  known 
for  its  sales  of  books. 

The  most  famous  fair  that  is  still  in  existence  is  that 
of  Nijni-Novgorod,  or  Lower  Novgorod,  in  Russia. 
This  began,  no  one  knows  when,  in  an  old  custom 
of  Russian  merchants  and  merchants  from  the  East 
meeting  on  the  Volga  River  to  exchange  goods.  The 
place  of  meeting  moved  from  one  site  to  another,  and 

260 


How  Goods  were  Sold 


NOVGOROD 


about  one  hundred  years  ago  it  was  permanently  settled 
at  Nijni-Novgorod.  When  the  time  of  the  fair  draws 
near,  the  Volga  River  swarms  with  boats,  and  the  quays 
for  ten  miles  along  the  river  front  are  heaped  up  with 
goods,  protected  as  best  they  may  be  by  sheds  until  they 
can  be  removed  to  the  shops  made  ready  for  them. 
There  are  about  six  thousand  of  these  shops,  most  of 
them  built  of  stone.  To  this  fair  Asia  sends  tea,  cotton, 
silk,  madder,  and  various  manufactured  wares,  made 
chiefly  of  leather.  Western  Europe  sends  groceries, 
wines,  and  manufactured  articles.  Russia  herself  pro- 

261 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

vides  four-fifths  of  the  goods  sold ;  and  she  makes  a  fine 
display  of  iron,  grain,  salt,  furs,  and  pottery.  The  fair 
continues  for  a  month.  It  is  estimated  that  the  value 
of  the  goods  sold  there  each  year  now  amounts  to  about 
three  hundred  million  dollars. 

S-  An  enormous  quantity  of  merchandise  was  carried 
over  Europe  every  year,  and  always  by  water  whenever 
there  was  a  convenient  river  or  sea.  In  the  thirteenth 
century  goods  from  India  were  brought  up  the  Persian 
Gulf  and  the  Tigris  River  until  the  point  nearest  to 
Antioch  and  Seleucia  was  reached.  Some  merchants 
then  went  directly  to  these  cities,  and  there  put  their 
goods  on  board  Venetian  vessels.  Others  went  from  the 
Tigris  northward  to  Trebizond  on  the  Black  Sea  by 
caravans.  At  Trebizond  they  met  Venetian  vessels,  and 
the  spices,  silks,  cottons,  oils,  sugar,  gums,  and  precious 
stones  of  the  East  were  carried  through  the  Black  Sea, 
the  sea  of  Marmora,  around  Greece,  into  the  Adriatic 
Sea,  and  then  to  Venice.  A  third  route  was  to  go  by 
water  from  India  to  Aden,  at  the  southeast  end  of  the 
Red  Sea,  make  a  nine-days'  journey  to  the  Nile,  down 
the  Nile  to  Cairo,  through  a  canal  to  Alexandria,  and 
there  transfer  the  cargo  to  Venetian  vessels.  It  was 
chiefly  through  this  trade  that  Venice  and,  a  little  later, 

262 


263 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

Genoa,  became  wealthy  and  powerful;  but  in  1497 
three  small  vessels  set  sail  from  Portugal  to  make  a  long 
voyage.  When  they  returned,  they  had  rounded  Africa 
and  so  had  discovered  a  new  route  to  India  and  the  East. 
The  people  of  the  East  were  no  longer  obliged  to  send 
their  goods  to  Europe  by  wearisome  and  dangerous  cara- 
van journeys;  they  could  load  them  upon  ships  and 
dispatch  them  directly  to  Portugal.  The  power  of  Ven- 
ice grew  less.  Genoa  was  forced  to  yield  to  Milan, 
which,  like  Florence,  had  won  wealth  and  fame  by  its 
manufactures. 

So  it  was  that  goods  were  brought  from  the  East  to 
Europe.  The  traders  who  carried  them  from  southern 
to  northern  Europe  must  have  been  glad  that  there  were 
two  such  rivers  as  the  Danube  and  the  Rhine;  for  they 
could  load  their  vessels  on  the  Black  Sea  and  float  them 
up  the  Danube  and  the  Waag,  if  they  were  going  to 
Russia;  or  they  could  continue  up  the  Danube  as  far  as 
it  was  navigable,  go  by  land  to  the  Rhine  River,  and 
then  down  the  Rhine  to  "the  quaint  old  Flemish  city" 
of  Bruges.  They  could  also  go  northwest  from  Venice 
to  the  Rhine  if  they  wished,  and  then  to  Bruges,  which 
was  for  a  long  while  the  centre  of  commerce  in  the 
north.  Many  Venetian  merchants  were  accustomed  to 

264 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

go  all  the  way  by  sea,  passing  through  the  Straits  of 
Gibraltar  and  up  the  coasts  of  Portugal  and  France  to 
Flanders. 

At  a  time  when  no  one  seemed  to  think  it  possible  to 
do  any  special  thing  unless  he  was  a  member  of  a  society 
for  doing  that  thing,  of  course  all  this  buying  and  sell- 
ing was  carried  on  in  great  degree,  not  by  individuals, 
but  by  companies  of  merchants.  This  was  far  more  than 
a  mere  custom.  Traders  usually  had  to  make  long  stays 
in  the  countries  where  they  went  to  sell  goods.  It  was 
often  next  to  impossible  for  a  foreigner  to  obtain  jus- 
tice, if  any  disagreement  arose  between  him  and  a  native ; 
but  many  merchants  united  in  a  strong  company  could 
win  not  only  justice,  but  valuable  privileges  of  trade. 
One  of  the  most  important  of  these  associations  in  Eng- 
land was  known  as  the  "Merchants  of  the  Staple." 
The  articles  exported  from  England  in  largest  quanti- 
ties, such  as  wool,  tin,  and  lead,  were  called  staples.  In 
order  to  make  sure  of  collecting  the  duty  on  them,  laws 
were  made  forbidding  any  one  to  export  these  things 
from  any  other  place  in  England  except  the  ten  "  staple 
towns/'  Newcastle,  York,  Lincoln,  Norwich,  Westmin- 
ster, Canterbury,  Chichester,  Winchester,  Exeter,  and 
Bristol.  The  staple  goods  were  taken  to  these  towns  to 

265 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

be  weighed  and  taxed,  and  then  they  might  be  shipped 
to  other  countries.  Wool  was  the  most  important  staple, 
for  until  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century,  the  Eng- 
lish wove  only  coarse,  heavy  cloth,  and  imported  their 
fine  cloth,  chiefly  from  the  Netherlands.  Some  town  in 
the  Netherlands  was  chosen  as  a  "  foreign  staple,"  and 
there  the  English  goods  must  be  carried  before  they 
could  be  sold.  The  plans  of  the  government,  however, 
for  staples  were  very  uncertain.  Just  as  merchants  be- 
came well  accustomed  to  one  foreign  staple  town,  an- 
other one  was  chosen.  Then  it  was  decided  to  remove 
the  staple  to  England,  then  to  the  Netherlands  again  ;  and 
more  than  once  the  whole  plan  of  staples  was  given  up 
for  a  time,  and  merchants  were  free  to  carry  what  they 
liked  wherever  they  chose  to  take  it. 

Traders  who  imported  or  exported  goods  in  their  own 
vessels  were  called  "adventurers/1  and  in  England  there 
was  a  famous  association  called  the  "Merchants  Adven- 
turers." Fine  weaving  had  at  length  been  introduced 
into  England,  and  the  exports  which  they  carried  from 
England  to  the  Netherlands  were  chiefly  cloth.  In  the 
beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  "Adventurers'" 
were  great  folk  indeed,  with  their  governor  and  twenty- 
four  assistant  governors,  their  great  wealth,  and  also  their 

266 


267 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

brand-new  charter  and  their  coat  of  arms,  both  granted 
to  them  by  the  king. 

There  was  one  company,  however,  far  greater  and 
more  famous  than  all  the  others.  This  was  the  Hanse- 
atic  League  which  has  already  been  mentioned.  "  Hanse  " 
or  "hansa"  is  a  word  of  several  meanings.  It  seems  to 
have  signified  in  the  first  place  a  society ;  then  the  fee 
paid  for  entrance  into  a  trading  gild;  then  a  company 
of  merchants  trading  away  from  home.  The  Hanseatic 
League  was  a  union  of  seventy  or  eighty  cities  in  north- 
ern Germany.  It  aimed  not  only  at  commerce,  but  at 
making  it  safe  to  travel  among  these  towns  and  also  by 
sea.  In  those  days  piracy  was  looked  upon  as  being  dis- 
agreeable, indeed,  for  any  vessel  that  was  captured  and 
robbed,  but  it  was,  nevertheless,  a  perfectly  respectable 
calling.  The  German  Ocean  and  the  Baltic  Sea  were 
overrun  by  a  gang  of  pirates,  one  of  whose  leaders  was  a 
nobleman  named  Stortebeker.  The  League  sent  out  its 
vessels  in  pursuit,  captured  the  leaders  and  one  hundred 
and  fifty  men.  Even  if  piracy  was  regarded  as  respect- 
able, the  pirate  who  was  caught  was  adjudged  to  deserve 
death,  and  this  nobleman  was  doomed  to  be  hanged  with 
his  companions.  "Let  me  go  free/*  he  said,  "and  I  will 
give  you  a  chain  of  pure  gold  long  enough  to  go  around 

268 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

the  cathedral  and  the  town."  This  request  was  refused; 
but  his  second  wish  was  granted,  namely,  that  he  and  his 
comrades  might  dress  themselves  in  their  best  and  march 
to  the  place  of  execution  to  the  music  of  drum  and  fife. 
The  Hanseatic  League  aimed  at  monopolizing  the 
trade  of  the  greater  part  of  Europe.  It  grew  stronger 
and  stronger.  Sometimes  the  members  bought  trade 
privileges,  and  sometimes  they  fought  for  them.  They 
established  "factories/*  or  trading  stations,  in  as  many 
countries  as  possible.  Bergen  in  Norway  was  one  of 
their  chief  stations.  They  paid  no  taxes,  and  obliged 
the  people  to  send  to  Bergen  all  the  productions  of  the 
land  that  were  for  sale.  There  the  Hansards  selected 
what  was  of  most  value  before  any  sales  could  be 
made  elsewhere.  About  three  thousand  members  of  the 
League  lived  in  the  factory  at  Bergen.  They  were  for- 
bidden to  marry  or  to  spend  a  single  night  out  of 
bounds.  The  young  men  and  boys  were  treated  with 
the  utmost  severity.  Every  newcomer  had  to  undergo 
tortures,  one  of  the  mildest  of  which  was  to  be  flogged 
till  the  blood  came.  If  he  survived,  the  possibility  lay 
before  him  of  rising  to  a  high  position  and  gaining 
great  wealth.  The  trade  of  Denmark  and  Sweden  was 
in  the  hands  of  the  League.  In  Russia  it  was  for  many 

269 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

years  so  powerful  that  it  was  able  to  forbid  the  Russian 
merchants  to  trade  on  the  sea.  The  members  established 
themselves  at  Novgorod;  and  at  length  became  strong 
enough  to  oblige  the  Russians  to  obey  whatever  laws 
they  chose  to  make.  For  instance,  if  a  Russian  mer- 
chant failed,  the  League  decreed  that  he  must  pay  in 
full  whatever  he  might  owe  the  Germans  before  he  was 
allowed  to  pay  the  smallest  debt  to  his  countrymen.  In 
the  Netherlands  the  Hansards  founded  a  factory  at 
Bruges.  Here  they  obliged  every  passing  vessel,  save 
those  going  to  England  or  the  Baltic  coast,  to  halt  at 
the  port  of  Bruges,  pay  toll,  and  allow  them  to  select 
from  the  cargo  whatever  they  chose  to  buy.  In  France, 
Spain,  Portugal,  and  Venice,  they  carried  on  trade ;  but 
not  so  widely  as  in  the  northern  countries. 

In  England  the  power  of  the  League  was  greatest. 
The  English  called  its  members  Easterlings,  because 
their  land  lay  to  the  east  of  England.  The  German 
money  was  often  spoken  of  as  Easterling,  or  sterling 
money.  It  was  with  this  sterling  money  that  the  Han- 
sards bought  their  way  to  the  favor  of  the  English  sover- 
eigns. More  than  once,  when  an  English  king  was.  in 
need  of  gold,  the  League  helped  him  out  of  his  diffi- 
culties, and  in  return  graciously  accepted  trade  privileges 

270 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

worth  far  more  than  the  loans  that  they  had  made.  The 
people  of  England  were  not  always  pleased  to  have  these 
favors  shown  to  foreigners,  and  during  the  Wat  Tyler 
rebellion  in  the  latter  part  of  the  thirteenth  century, 
they  made  a  fierce  attack  upon  the  Germans.  "  Say 
'  bread  and  cheese/  "  they  would  command  every  one 
who  was  suspected  of  being  a  foreigner.  If  he  pro- 
nounced the  words  with  a  trace  of  the  German  accent, 
he  was  struck  down  on  the  instant.  It  was  easy,  how- 
ever, for  the  Hansards  to  get  their  revenge.  All  that 
they  had  to  do  was  to  tax  the  English  heavily  at  Bruges 
or  Bergen,  or  to  refuse  to  allow  their  vessels  to  enter 
the  Baltic  Sea  or  to  stop  at  any  port  of  Iceland  or 
Greenland.  In  the  latter  part  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
however,  both  Hansards  and  English  had  been  playing 
pirate,  and  at  length  a  treaty  was  actually  made  between 
them  with  as  many  formalities  as  if  this  trading  com- 
pany had  been  another  nation. 

The  headquarters  of  the  League  in  England  were  a 
settlement  in  London  known  as  the  Steelyard,  probably 
because  here  stood  the  great  scales  called  by  that  name. 
This  was  a  city  within  a  city.  Its  buildings  stretched  up 
from  the  river  front,  so  that  the  merchandise  of  the 
League  could  be  unloaded  at  its  own  wharves.  Here 

271 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

stood  the  great  hall,  a  handsome  stone  building  which 
was  used  for  business  meetings  and  also  for  a  dining 
room.  A  strong  tower  protected  the  treasures  of  the 
company.  Not  far  away  was  a  garden  with  trees  and 
vines.  There  were  also  tables  and  seats;  for  the  garden 
became  a  favorite  resort  for  both  Hansards  and  London- 
ers, who  went  there  summer  evenings  to  drink  Rhenish 
wine  and  eat  the  salmon,  caviar,  and  neat's  tongue  for 
which  it  was  famous. 

Life  in  the  Steelyard  was  far  from  being  all  play, 
however,  for  there  was  plenty  of  work  for  everybody 
and  the  rules  of  the  place  were  exceedingly  strict.  No 
one  was  allowed  to  marry  so  long  as  he  remained  at  the 
settlement.  Playing  at  dice  even  in  one's  own  room  and 
entertaining  any  person  not  a  member  of  the  League 
were  punished  by  heavy  fines.  If  a  man  fenced  or  played 
tennis  with  an  Englishman,  he  was  fined  twenty  shil- 
lings. If  two  men  indulged  in  a  fight  with  either  fists 
or  knives,  they  needed  to  have  long  purses,  for  the  fine 
was  one  hundred  shillings.  Every  evening,  promptly  at 
nine  o'clock,  the  door  of  each  dwelling  was  shut  and 
locked  and  the  key  given  to  one  of  the  officers. 

In  Norway  the  Hansards  behaved  with  a  high  hand, 
demanding  whatever  they  desired  and  forcing  the  help- 

272 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

less  folk  of  Bergen  to  do  as  they  were  bidden.  In  Eng- 
land the  German  merchants  were  no  less  bent  upon 
having  their  own  way;  but  as  far  as  possible,  they 


TRANSPORTING    MERCHANDISE 


bought  privileges  rather  than  demanded  them.  They 
made  liberal  gifts,  but  usually  in  directions  where  they 
would  "  do  the  most  good."  The  Lord  Mayor  of  Lon- 
don received  from  them  a  generous  present  each  year. 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

The  English  alderman  whose  business  it  was  to  settle 
any  disputes  that  might  arise  between  English  and  Ger- 
mans was  more  than  willing  to  accept  from  the  League 
its  annual  gift  of  fifteen  gold  coins  worth  about  one 
hundred  shillings,  wrapped  in  a  pair  of  gloves.  The  In- 
spector of  Customs  fared  even  better,  for  once  a  year 
a  friendly  windfall  of  about  four  hundred  shillings 
delighted  his  heart. 

In  spite  of  lavish  gifts  to  those  in  power  and  of 
princely  loans  to  English  sovereigns,  the  Steelyard  had 
to  be  prepared  at  all  times  to  defend  itself  against  a 
London  mob,  and  as  a  safeguard  a  high  stone  wall  was 
built  to  shut  in  the  settlement  from  the  rest  of  the  city. 
Every  merchant  was  required  to  keep  in  his  room  a  suit 
of  armor  and  a  supply  of  arms  in  order  to  be  prepared 
for  any  possible  uprising. 

As  English  merchants  grew  stronger,  their  jealousy 
of  the  League  increased.  The  attacks  of  the  mob  upon 
the  Steelyard  became  more  frequent,  and  at  length,  near 
the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  its  charter  was  taken 
away.  The  later  history  of  the  League  in  other  coun- 
tries was  much  the  same.  The  Hanseatic  merchants 
were  so  successful  that  the  merchants  of  other  lands 
sought  earnestly  for  the  same  success;  and  as  soon  as  the 

274 


How  Goods  were  Sold 

different  cities  and  countries  became  rich  and  powerful 
enough  to  manage  their  own  trade,  the  League  weak- 
ened and  came  to  its  end.  The  free  cities,  Hamburg 
and  Bremen,  were  the  last  to  yield;  but  in  1888  these 
two  gave  up  their  independence  and  joined  the  German 
Empire. 

If  we  judge  the  Hanseatic  League  by  present  stand- 
ards, its  methods  seem  cruel  and  despotic;  but  it  is  a 
long  way  from  the  thirteenth  century  to  the  twentieth; 
and  many  things  are  frowned  upon  now  that  were  re- 
garded as  entirely  right  and  proper  seven  hundred  years 
ago.  Remembering  this,  we  can  appreciate  the  fact 
that  the  record  of  the  League  should  be  looked  upon  as 
a  noble  one.  It  aided  the  development  of  industry,  it 
spread  civilization,  it  created  the  commerce  of  northern 
Europe,  and  it  trained  merchants  and  magistrates  and 
sea-captains.  In  the  cities  of  the  League  there  was  cour- 
age and  independence,  there  was  industry  and  enterprise; 
better  still,  there  was  an  ever  increasing  appreciation  of 
order  and  of  peace. 


CHAPTER    XIII 

SCHOOLS  AND   LITERATURE 

THE  schools  of  the  Middle  Ages  were  quite  unlike  those 
of  to-day.  They  are  interesting  to  read  about,  but  they 
can  hardly  have  been  interesting  to  the  pupils ;  for  the 
poor  children  were  treated  with  the  utmost  severity.  It 
was  the  general  belief  that  Satan  was  in  them  and  that 
nothing  but  frequent  whippings  would  drive  him  out. 
Even  in  their  own  homes,  the  troubles  of  children  were 
many;  for  instance,  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  every  De- 
cember, Holy  Innocents  Day,  they  were  flogged  in  their 
beds  that  they  might  remember  Herod's  murder  of  the 
babies  of  Bethlehem.  In  many  schools  boys  were  flogged 
at  regular  intervals,  whether  they  had  been  good  or  bad. 
In  some  places,  even  as  late  as  the  fourteenth  century,  a 
man  who  had  been  chosen  schoolmaster  was  given  a 
ferule,  a  rod,  and  a  boy,  and  was  required  to  show  in 
public  how  well  he  could  administer  a  flogging. 

Between  500  and  noo  the  clergy  were  the  only 
schoolmasters.  Sometimes  the  parish  priest  of  a  village  or 
town  carried  on  an  elementary  school.  There  were  also 

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Schools  and  Literature 

cathedral  schools  in  charge  of  the  bishops  of  various 
dioceses;  but  by  far  the  larger  number  were  connected 
with  monasteries.  In  the  earlier  part  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
from  the  sixth  century  to  the  middle  of  the  eighth,  the 
monastery  schools  of  Ireland  and  of  England  were  by  far 
the  best.  Three  or  four  centuries  after  the  days  of  Saint 
Patrick,  Ireland  was  known  as  "  the  island  of  saints  and 
scholars/'  and  was  the  most  learned  country  in  Europe. 
The  pupils  built  tiny  huts  near  the  schools,  and  in  these 
a  rich  scholar  and  a  poor  often  lived  together,  the  poor 
serving  the  rich  for  his  food  and  clothes.  There  were 
no  prizes,  and  tuition  was  free  to  all  who  could  not 
afford  to  pay.  Most  of  the  studying  and  reciting  was 
done  in  the  open  air.  Latin  was  the  book  language  of 
the  time,  and  was  used  in  teaching  as  soon  as  pupils 
could  understand  it ;  but  in  the  Irish  schools  Gaelic  and 
Greek  were  also  studied.  One  who  had  completed  the 
course  in  school  and  university  and  become  an  "ollave," 
or  doctor  of  philosophy,  was  expected  to  be  able  to  com- 
pose verses  extempore  on  any  subject.  He  must  know 
seven  hundred  and  fifty  historical  tales  and  be  ready  to 
recite  any  that  were  called  for  at  feasts.  The  greatest 
respect  was  paid  to  the  ollave.  He  sat  next  to  the  chief 
or  king.  For  his  support  "  twenty-one  cows  and  their 

277 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

grass"  were  given  him.  When  he  went  on  a  journey, 
he  had  the  right  to  an  escort  of  twenty-four  tutors,  ad- 
vanced pupils,  and  servants.  It  was  looked  upon  as  so 
great  an  honor  to  entertain  him  and  his  retinue  that  no 
one  below  a  certain  rank  was  permitted  to  have  this 
privilege.  If  in  the  teacher's  old  age  even  his  "  twenty- 
one  cows  and  their  grass  "  did  not  keep  him  from  pov- 
erty, his  former  pupils  were  expected  to  care  for  him; 
and  this  was  always  done  with  reverence  and  tenderness. 

In  England,  one  of  the  most  famous  schools  was  at 
the  monastery  of  Jarrow,  where  six  hundred  monks  be- 
sides many  strangers  and  no  one  knows  how  many  boys 
studied.  The  chief  teacher  was  Baeda,  or  the  Venerable 
Bede,  the  first  English  scholar.  He  loved  the  out-of-door 
work  that  was  required  of  the  monks,  the  care  of  the 
garden,  the  sheep,  and  the  young  calves ;  but  he  loved 
his  books  and  his  pupils.  "  I  don't  want  my  boys  to  read 
a  lie,"  he  said,  and  he  translated  for  them  the  Gospel 
of  Saint  John  and  made  for  their  textbooks  collections 
of  all  that  was  then  known  of  science  and  grammar  and 
rhetoric. 

During  the  reign  of  Charlemagne,  at  some  time  be- 
tween 780  and  800,  the  various  monasteries  wrote  to 
him  that  within  their  walls  prayers  would  be  offered 

278 


Schools  and  Literature 


INTERIOR    OF    A    SCHOOL 


for  him.  He  thanked  the  monks  most  cordially,  but  told 
them  plainly  that  the  language  of  their  letters  was  rude 
and  illiterate  and  bade  them  begin  to  study.  He  founded 
schools,  and  he  kept  watch  of  them.  Once  at  least  he 
examined  a  number  of  the  boys'  exercises.  He  found 
that  the  poor  boys  had  done  far  better  than  the  rich. 
He  praised  the  poor  boys  most  warmly,  and  then  gave  a 
severe  lecture  to  the  wealthy  ones.  He  told  them  that 
their  birth  and  riches  would  count  for  nothing  at  all 
with  him,  and  that  if  they  hoped  for  his  favor,  they 
must  go  to  work. 

Charlemagne  set  these  idle  pupils  a  good  example, 
for  he  himself  was  a  student.   He  tried  his  best  to  learn 

279 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

to  write;  and  under  his  pillow  he  kept  tablets  for  prac- 
tising; but  his  great  hand  was  accustomed  to  wielding  a 
mighty  sword  rather  than  a  slender  pen,  and  he  never 
succeeded.  He  was  deeply  interested  in  astronomy,  and 
he  had  a  fair  knowledge  of  Greek.  Latin  he  is  said  to 
have  spoken  as  readily  as  German.  It  had  long  been  a 
custom  to  carry  on  a  school  at  the  Prankish  court;  but 
the  palace  school  took  on  new  life  under  the  care  of 
Charlemagne,  for  he  himself  was  its  most  eager  member. 
The  pupils  were  the  family  of  the  king  and  the  cour- 
tiers. For  the  older  folk,  the  school  was  a  sort  of  club 
which  met  to  discuss  literary  and  scientific  questions. 
The  members  dropped  their  real  names  and  took  others. 
Charlemagne  chose  David,  others  chose  Samuel,  Homer, 
etc.  One  name,  Witto,  meaning  white,  was  changed  to 
the  Latin  form,  Candidus;  Arno,  meaning  eagle,  became 
in  the  same  way  Aquila.  The  master  of  the  school,  the 
learned  Alcuin,  had  formerly  been  at  the  head  of  the 
monastery  school  of  York.  He  wrote  textbooks  for  his 
royal  pupils.  For  the  king's  son  Pepin,  a  boy  of  sixteen, 
he  prepared  a  list  of  questions  and  answers.  These  are 
rather  poetical  than  scientific.  One  question  is,  "What  is 
frost ?"  and  the  answer  is,  "A  persecutor  of  plants,  a  de- 
stroyer of  leaves,  a  fetter  of  the  earth,  a  fountain  of 

280 


Schools  and  Literature 

water."  Some  of  the  questions  are  hardly  more  than 
puzzles  or  riddles.  One  is,  "What  is  wonderful?"  No 
one  would  ever  guess  the  answer,  for  it  is,  "  I  lately  saw 
a  man  stand  and  a  dead  man  walk  who  never  existed." 
The  explanation  follows,  that  the  object  seen  was  a  re- 
flection in  the  water.  The  king  was  so  eager  to  bring 
educated  men  around  him  that  when  he  was  told  of  the 
learning  of  Saint  Augustine  and  Saint  Jerome,  he  ex- 
claimed, "Why  cannot  I  have  twelve  such  men  as 
these  ? "  "  What !  "  cried  Alcuin,  "  The  Lord  of  heaven 
and  earth  had  but  two  such,  and  wouldst  thou  have 
twelve?" 

In  England  monasteries  and  libraries  had  been  de- 
stroyed by  the  Danes,  and  when  Alfred  came  to  the 
throne  in  971,  there  was  not  one  priest  south  of  the 
river  Thames,  the  most  enlightened  part  of  England, 
who  could  translate  a  page  of  Latin  into  English.  It  was 
many  years  before  Alfred  could  win  quiet  for  his  land; 
but  when  peace  had  been  made,  he  built  monasteries  and 
sent  for  learned  men,  his  favorite  among  them  being 
the  Welsh  priest  Asser.  Both  Alfred  and  Charlemagne 
realized  that  people  ought  to  be  able  to  read  their  own 
language,  even  if  it  was  not  so  polished  as  the  Latin; 
and  Alfred  decreed  that  all  the  free  young  folk  of  the 

281 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

kingdom  should  learn  to  read  English,  and  that  only 
those  who  could  give  more  time  to  study  should  learn 
Latin.  There  were  very  few  English  books,  and  the 
busy  man  with  a  kingdom  on  his  hands  set  to  work  to 
translate  those  that  he  thought  best  adapted  to  the  needs 
of  his  people.  One  was  a  sort  of  history  and  geography, 
written  by  a  Spaniard  called  Orosius.  Alfred  made  many 
additions  of  his  own;  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  they 
were  needed,  for  the  book  was  already  five  hundred 
years  old. 

This  book  by  Orosius  was  used  as  a  textbook  in  Eu- 

• 

rope  for  many  centuries.  Other  favorites  were  the  writ- 
ings of  Bede  and  the  Doctrinale  of  one  Alexander  Dolen- 
sis.  This  was  a  textbook  of  grammar  and  was  used  for 
some  three  or  four  hundred  years.  The  Latin  Psalter 
was  perhaps  the  most  common  textbook.  As  soon  as 
boys  had  learned  the  alphabet  and  could  read  a  little, 
they  were  promoted  to  the  Psalter.  They  went  over 
this  so  often  that  many  of  them  could  say  it  by  heart, 
often  without  knowing  its  meaning.  They  learned  to 
write  with  a  stylus  on  waxed  tablets ;  then  they  were  al- 
lowed to  use  quills  and  ink  and  write  on  parchment. 
They  were  taught  to  sing  the  Church  service.  In  Latin 
they  studied  the  declensions  and  conjugations  and  long 

282 


283 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

lists  of  words,  and  they  also  learned  Latin  conversation 
books  by  heart. 

As  soon  as  boys  had  completed  this  elementary  work, 
they  began  on  the  trivium,  or  three-fold  way.  This  was 
grammar,  rhetoric,  and  logic.  In  grammar  they  had  to 
learn  long  lists  of  answers  to  questions ;  they  copied  the 
fables  of  ^Esop  besides  many  proverbs  and  maxims;  they 
read  Virgil  and  some  of  the  Christian  poets.  In  rhetoric 
they  studied  the  works  of  Cicero  and  Quintilian. 

At  the  end  of  the  trivium  came  the  quadrivium,  or 
the  four-fold  way.  This  included  music,  arithmetic, 
geometry,  and  what  was  known  of  the  sciences.  Even 
the  most  elementary  arithmetic  was  no  easy  study,  for 
until  the  Arabic  numerals  were  introduced,  the  Roman 
notation  was  used.  In  speaking,  numbers  were  often  in- 
dicated by  motions.  To  place  the  left  hand  on  the 
breast  meant  10,000.  To  fold  both  hands,  100,000.  In 
business,  the  abacus  was  sometimes  employed,  an  instru- 
ment made  by  stringing  beads  on  wires,  the  first  wire 
indicating  units,  the  second  tens,  and  so  on.  Sometimes 
a  board  was  marked  off  into  spaces,  and  the  numbers 
were  expressed  by  pebbles.  The  number  2451,  for  in- 
stance, would  be  represented  as  . .  | | | .  Among 

the  studies  of  the  quadrivium,  astronomy  was  especially 

284 


Schools  and  Literature 

important  because  the  time  of  the  Church  festivals  was 
reckoned  by  that  science.  There  were  so  few  textbooks 
that  as  a  general  thing  the  teacher  dictated  and  the  pu- 
pils wrote.  Then  they  learned  by  heart  what  they  had 
written,  and  were  soundly  whipped  if  they  made  mis- 
takes. Girls  were  taught  in  convents  by  the  nuns.  They 
learned  to  embroider,  to  care  for  a  house,  to  follow  the 
services  of  the  Church  and  obey  her  rules,  and  also  to 
read  and  write  to  some  degree.  All  learning  centred  in 
the  Church.  The  monks  and  clergy  were  the  teachers, 
and  the  first  object  of  their  teaching  was  to  train  boys 
for  her  various  offices.  No  boy  was  shut  out  of  her 
schools  because  of  poverty.  Those  who  declared  that 
they  meant  to  become  monks,  the  oblati,  were  taught 
and  fed  free  of  charge ;  the  others,  the  externes,  paid 
nothing  for  tuition ;  and  if  they  could  not  afford  to  pay 
for  food,  it  was  given  them  by  the  convent. 

During  the  tenth  and  eleventh  centuries  especially 
there  was  great  interest  in  chivalry,  in  the  deeds  that  a 
man  could  do  with  his  own  right  arm,  in  individuality. 
The  towns  increased  in  number  and  size.  The  crusades 
gave  people  broader  ideas  of  the  world.  In  Spain,  the 
Saracens  were  searching  for  the  philosopher's  stone  that 
should  turn  into  gold  whatever  it  touched;  and  for  the 

285 


V 


When  Knights  where  Bold 

wonderful  elixir  that  should  give  a  man  youth  and  life 
for  as  long  as  he  chose.  They  were  using  the  Arabic,  or 
probably  more  correctly,  the  Hindu  numerals ;  and  this 
alone  opened  a  new  world  for  mathematics.  By  all  these 
means  the  people  of  Europe  were  aroused  and  made 
eager  to  learn  something  new.  The  result  of  this  desire 
was  the  founding  of  numerous  universities  in  the  twelfth 
century. 

The  modern  way  of  founding  a  university  is  to  raise 
"^  money,  obtain  a  charter,  buy  land,  and  put  up  some 
buildings ;  but  the  method  of  the  twelfth  century  was 
quite  different.  Indeed,  in  those  times  a  university  grew 
rather  than  was  founded.  Any  learned  man  who  be- 
lieved that  he  had  something  to  say  about  a  favorite 
subject  could  settle  himself  near  some  school  and  give 
lectures  to  as  many  as  cared  to  listen  to  him.  Other 
learned  men  followed  him  and  lectured  on  other  sub- 
jects. In  short,  at  first  anybody  lectured  and  anybody 
listened;  and  the  lecturer  who  could  bring  together  the 
greatest  number  of  students  received  the  most  money  in 
fees.  After  a  while,  men  were  obliged  to  secure  a  license 
before  being  permitted  to  teach. 

The  students  were  not  regarded  as  citizens  of  the 
town  in  which  the  university  was  situated,  and  therefore 

286 


Schools  and  Literature 

in  order  to  protect  themselves,  those  who  spoke  the 
same  language  united  in  one  association,  or  "  nation." 
Naturally,  they  tried  to  lodge  in  the  same  part  of  the 
city,  and  sometimes  they  even  built  lodgings  for  them- 
selves. At  five  or  six  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  the  students  in  Paris 
thronged  to  the  lecture  hall,  and 
sat  down  on  the  floor  on  the  straw 
or  hay  with  which  it  was  strewn. 
They  took  notes  on  waxed  tablets 
for  several  hours.  Some  of  them 
then  hurried  home  to  copy  their 
notes;  others  met  in  a  meadow 
playground  for  wrestling,  ball-play- 

SEAL  OF  ENGLISH  "  NATION' 

ing,  running,  jumping,  or  swim- 
ming in  the  river  Seine.  Sometimes  the  different  na- 
tions carried  on  a  rough-and-tumble  warfare  with  one 
another.  Sometimes  they  fought  with  the  townsfolk. 
The  town  could  do  nothing  to  control  them,  for  the 
university  had  no  buildings  and  no  apparatus ;  and  if 
they  chose,  teachers  and  pupils  could  simply  put  on 
their  hats,  take  up  their  handful  of  books,  and  go  else- 
where, leaving  the  merchants  of  the  town  to  mourn 
over  their  loss  of  several  thousand  customers. 

287 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

As  a  general  thing,  each  university  became  specially 
excellent  in  some  one  branch.  The  university  at  Paris, 
for  instance,  was  famed  for  its  teaching  of  theology ; 
that  of  Salerno  for  its  instruction  in  medicine,  and  that 
of  Bologna  in  law.  Students  wandered  from  one  to  an- 
other, learning  "in  no  place  decent  manners,"  said  a 
monk  indignantly.  Many  who  were  poor  begged  their 
food  as  they  journeyed,  often  singing  their  petitions, 
One  of  these  songs  begins:  — 

I,  a  wandering  student  lad, 

Born  for  toil  and  sadness, 
Oftentimes  am  driven  by 

Poverty  to  madness. 

Literature  and  knowledge  I 

Fain  would  still  be  earning, 
Were  it  not  that  want  of  pelf 

Makes  me  cease  from  learning. 

He  then  rehearses  his  many  needs  and  begs:  — 

Take  a  mind  unto  thee  now 

Like  unto  Saint  Martin's; 
Clothe  the  pilgrim's  nakedness, 

Wish  him  well  at  parting. 

So  may  God  translate  your  soul 
Into  peace  eternal, 

2 


Schools  and  Literature 

And  the  bliss  of  saints  be  yours 
In  His  realm  supernal.1 

A  great  deal  of  writing  was  done  by  these  learned 
folk ;  but  the  larger  part  of  it  was  about  philosophy  and 
theology.  Much  of  the  most  interesting  literary  work  of 
the  Middle  Ages  came  from  the  common  folk,  and  was 
in  the  first  place  stories  and  legends  recited  by  one  per- 
son to  another  or  songs  that  were  chanted  at  feasts  and 
merrymakings.  If  in  any  country  there  was  a  brave  man 
who  was  greatly  admired  by  the  people,  of  course  the 
accounts  of  his  mighty  deeds  were  told  and  retold;  and 
there  is  small  doubt  that  they  grew  a  little  more  mar- 
velous at  each  telling.  Often  they  were  put  into  verse. 
No  one  who  repeated  them  cared  in  the  least  whether 
he  gave  them  correctly  or  not;  and  each  added  or  al- 
tered to  suit  his  taste.  By  and  by  some  one  welded  the 
ballads  together  into  a  heroic  poem  with  a  beginning 
and  an  ending. 

The  old  Saxon,  or  early  English,  poem  of  Beowulf 
is  thought  to  have  grown  up  in  this  way  from  the  songs 
sung  by  the  harpers  before  the  Saxons  left  the  Continent 
to  come  to  Britain.  It  is  the  story  of  a  brave  young  hero 
from  whom  the  poem  takes  its  name.  He  kills  a  hor- 

1  Translated  by  J.  A.  Symonds. 

289 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

rible  monster  named  Grendel  who  stalks  up  from  the 
fens  in  the  misty  twilight  and  devours  the  thanes,  or 
followers,  of  the  aged  chief  Hrothgar.  Grendel's  mother 
is  as  terrible  as  he;  but  Beowulf  dives  down  to  the  depths 
of  the  lake  and  kills  her  in  her  cavern.  Hrothgar's  men 
stand  on  the  cliff,  gazing  at  the  bloodstained  water. 
They  fear  that  they  will  never  again  see  the  bold  cham- 
pion ;  but  at  last  he  comes  to  the  surface.  Then  there  is 
feasting  and  rejoicing,  and  Beowulf  goes  home  to  his 
people  loaded  with  gifts  from  the  grateful  Hrothgar. 
He  is  afterwards  slain  in  a  contest  with  a  fire-breathing 
dragon. 

The  Nibelungenlied,  or  song  of  the  Nibelungs,  comes 
from  Germany  in  one  form  and  from  Scandinavia  in 
another.  In  the  German  version  of  the  story,  the  haughty 
and  athletic  maiden  Brunhild  declares  that  she  will  marry 
no  one  who  cannot  in  three  contests  prove  himself 
stronger  than  she.  Siegfried,  the  hero,  puts  on  a  magic 
cap  which  makes  him  invisible,  and  then  by  his  help 
her  suitor  Giinther,  king  of  Burgundy,  wins  his  bride. 
Siegfried's  reward  is  the  hand  of  Giinther's  sister,  the 
beautiful  Kriemhild.  They  live  happily  together  in  the 
Netherlands,  enjoying  the  "Rhine  gold,"  or  "Nibe- 
lungen  Treasure,"  which  he  had  seized  from  the  sons  of 

290 


Schools  and  Literature 

the  king  of  the  Nibelungs.  But  the  two  women  quar- 
reled, and  Kriemhild  let  out  the  secret  of  the  invisible 
cap  and  the  victory  of  Gunther  in  the  contest.  Then 
Brunhild  plotted  revenge.  She  learned  that  Siegfried 
could  be  slain  in  one  way  only,  that  is,  by  piercing  a  cer- 
tain spot  between  his  shoulders,  and  she  induced  Kriem- 
hild's  uncle,  Hagen,  to  kill  him  as  he  knelt  by  a  brook  to 
drink.  After  years  of  grieving,  Kriemhild  married  Etzel, 
or  Attila,  on  condition  that  he  would  avenge  the  death 
of  Siegfried.  When  a  fitting  time  had  come,  Attila  in- 
vited the  Burgundians  to  visit  his  court,  and  there  they 
were  massacred  by  the  Huns  at  the  bidding  of  Kriem- 
hild. She  slew  Hagen  with  her  own  hand ;  but  one  of 
Attila's  knights  struck  her  down,  and  she  fell  dead  by 
the  side  of  Siegfried's  murderer.  The  treasure  of  the 
Nibelungs  had  been  stolen  from  her  and  sunk  in  the 
river  Rhine  by  Hagen ;  and,  if  the  tale  is  true,  there  it 
still  lies  hidden. 

The  Cid  comes  from  Spain.  It  is  a  poem  about  a  real 
person,  one  Rodrigo  Diaz,  who  won  the  title  of  El  Cid, 
or  my  lord,  by  overcoming  five  Moorish  kings.  The  Cid 
was  the  hero  of  many  of  the  feats  that  the  folk  of  the 
twelfth  century  counted  valorous.  He  killed  the  enemy 
of  his  father  and  galloped  home  with  the  bloody  head 

291 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

of  the  foe  hanging  from  his  horse's  collar.  He  drove 
away  the  invaders  of  Spain,  and  he  captured  cities;  but 
his  greatest  exploit  of  all  took  place  after  his  death. 
Without  him  the  Spaniards  could  not  expel  the  Moors ; 
but  they  well  knew  that  the  terror  of  his  name  would 
do  more  than  all  the  arms  of  Castile  and  Leon.  They 
took  the  dead  body  of  their  leader,  dressed  it  in  battle 
array,  with  a  sword  in  the  cold  hand,  with  a  coat  of 
mail,  a  shield,  a  helmet,  and  a  lance,  mounted  it  on 
Babieca,  their  lord's  favorite  war  horse,  set  it  at  the  head 
of  the  line,  and  then  went  forth  to  battle,  with  the  dead 
rider  at  their  head.  The  enemy  fled  before  them;  and 
after  the  victories  had  been  won,  they  laid  the  body  re- 
verently in  a  tomb  in  Castile.  When  the  good  horse 
Babieca  came  to  his  end,  he  was  buried  under  the  trees 
before  the  door  of  the  tomb.  To  this  day  the  memory 
of  the  Cid  is  so  dear  to  the  Spaniards  that  to  swear  "by 
the  faith  of  Rodrigo"  is  the  strongest  vow  of  loyalty 
that  they  can  make. 

The  most  delightful  old  romances  of  knighthood  are 
about  Charlemagne  of  Germany  and  Arthur  of  Britain 
and  their  knights.  Twelve  of  Charlemagne's  followers 
were  so  equal  in  bravery  that  they  were  known  as  Peers, 
and  sometimes  they  were  called  Paladins,  or  dwellers  in 

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Schools  and  Literature 

the  palace.  They  performed  most  amazing  exploits. 
They  tamed  wild  horses,  they  overcame  giants,  they 
captured  cities,  rescued  fair  ladies,  and  conquered  demons 
who  flew  over  the  world  on  winged  steeds.  Two  of  the 
Peers,  Roland  and  Oliver,  were  once  chosen  to  fight  a 
duel  in  order  to  settle  a  disagreement  between  Charle- 
magne and  one  of  his  underlords.  Their  faces  were 
hidden  by  their  helmets,  and  neither  knew  who  his  ad- 
versary was.  For  two  long  hours  they  fought,  but 
neither  could  gain  the  smallest  advantage  over  the  other. 
At  length  Roland  struck  so  savage  a  blow  that  his 
sword  stuck  fast  in  Oliver's  shield;  and  at  the  same  in- 
stant Oliver  struck  at  Roland's  breastplate  so  fiercely 
that  his  sword  broke  off  at  the  handle.  They  wrestled 
together,  but  neither  fell.  Then  they  tore  off  each 
other's  helmet,  and  behold,  each  found  that  he  had  been 
fighting  with  his  dearest  friend.  "I  yield,"  said  Oliver; 
"I  am  vanquished,"  cried  Roland.  It  is  from  this  that 
the  saying  arose,  "A  Roland  for  an  Oliver." 

The  most  famous  story  of  the  Paladins  of  Charle- 
magne is  told  in  the  poem  called  the  Song  of  Roland, 
which  relates  how  the  brave  knight  came  to  his  death 
at  Roncesvalles  through  the  treachery  of  an  enemy. 
There  is  a  tradition  that  when  William  the  Conqueror 

293 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

came  to  England  his  minstrel  Taillefer  rode  out  in  front 
of  the  line  of  battle  singing  this  Song  of  Roland,  and 
struck  the  first  blow  at  the  English  for  his  master. 

Arthur  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  British  hero  who 
resisted  the  Saxons  on  their  coming  to  Britain.  The  ro- 
mances say  that  he  and  his  knights  sat  at  a  famous  table, 
round  in  shape  that  it  might  have  neither  head  nor  foot. 
They  contended  with  the  heathen  invaders,  they  took 
part  in  jousts  and  wonderful  tournaments,  and  they  had 
wild  and  bold  adventures  in  their  attempts  to  avenge  the 
wrongs  that  came  within  their  ken.  In  their  hall  of 
feasting  there  was  a  special  seat,  or  siege,  for  each;  but 
one,  the  Siege  Perilous,  was  vacant,  for  should  any  one 
who  was  not  altogether  pure  in  heart  venture  to  occupy 
it,  the  earth  would  open  and  swallow  him.  One  day  an 
old,  old  man  led  a  beautiful  youth  named  Galahad  into 
Arthur's  hall  and  bade  him  seat  himself  in  the  Siege 
Perilous;  and,  behold,  when  the  covering  was  lifted 
from  it,  there  appeared  written  on  the  chair,  "This  is 
the  siege  of  Sir  Galahad,  the  good  knight." 

At  this  point,  the  story  of  Arthur  and  his  knight 
mingles  with  another,  that  of  the  Holy  Grail,  or  the 
cup  used  by  Jesus  at  the  Last  Supper.  According  to  the 
legend,  this  cup  was  brought  by  Joseph  of  Arimathea 

294 


Schools  and  Literature 


KING  ARTHUR  S  ROUND  TABLE 


to  Britain.  As  men  became  sinful,  it  vanished,  for  it 
could  be  seen  by  him  only  who  was  pure  and  true  in 
heart.  It  came  to  pass  that  one  evening  while  the 
knights  sat  at  supper,  a  cracking  of  thunder  was  heard 

295 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  a  beam  of  light  seven  times  brighter  than  that  of 
the  sun  passed  through  the  hall;  and  in  the  beam  was 
the  Holy  Grail,  but  covered  with  white  samite  that 
none  might  see  it.  The  knights  took  a  solemn  vow 
that  they  would  set  forth  and  wander  through  and 
through  the  world  until  the  vision  of  the  Holy  Thing 
should  come  to  them.  Their  courage  was  good,  and 
their  adventures  were  many,  but  to  Galahad  alone,  of 
unstained  heart,  did  the  vision  come.  "  Sithence  was 
there  never  no  man  so  hardy  for  to  say  that  hee  had 
scene  the  sancgreall,"  says  the  old  story. 

From  Iceland  comes  the  Heimskringla,  or  world's  cir- 
cle, so  named  from  the  first  words  of  the  manuscript. 
From  Iceland,  too,  come  the  Edda  and  the  Younger 
Edda,  and  all  three  are  full  of  wild  tales  of  gods  and 
heroes.  One  of  the  best  known  of  the  Icelandic  tales  is 
the  saga,  or  hero  story,  of  Frithiof.  The  story  says  that 
as  a  child  Frithiof  played  with  Ingeborg  and  learned  to 
love  her  well ;  but  when  they  were  grown  up  and  he 
begged  her  brothers  for  her  hand,  they  scorned  him  and 
drove  him  away ;  for  he  was  but  a  subject,  while  the 
father  of  Ingeborg  had  been  a  king.  The  brothers  went 
to  war,  and  the  two  lovers  met  in  the  temple  of  Baldur, 
the  god  of  beauty  and  truth.  For  a  man  to  speak  \\ith 

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Schools  and  Literature 

a  woman  in  this  temple  was  looked  upon  as  irreverent 
to  the  gods ;  and  in  punishment  Frithiof  was  bidden  to 
go  to  the  Orkney  Islands  and  collect  a  tribute  which 
had  long  been  due.  He  set  off  on  the  dangerous  journey 
in  his  magic  vessel  Ellida,  which  knew  his  voice  and 
obeyed  his  word,  and  after  storms  at  sea  and  adventures 
on  land  he  brought  back  the  gold.  But  much  had  come 
to  pass  while  he  had  been  away.  His  home  had  been 
burned  by  Helge,  Ingeborg's  brother,  and  Ingeborg  had 
become  the  wife  of  a  king,  Sigurd  Ring.  Frithiof  flung 
the  purse  of  gold  in  Helge's  face  and  fled  to  his  ship 
Ellida.  Over  the  world  he  wandered,  sailing,  fighting, 
winning  treasure  for  his  men  and  fame  for  himself;  but 
all  the  time  longing  eagerly  for  Ingeborg.  At  length 
he  felt  that  he  must  know  whether  she  was  happy,  and 
he  made  his  way  as  a  stranger  to  the  court  of  King  Sig- 
urd Ring.  The  king  begged  him  to  remain  as  his  guest, 
and  henceforth  wherever  Sigurd  and  Ingeborg  might 
be,  there  was  Frithiof,  caring  for  them  and  saving  them 
from  danger. 

King  Sigurd  was  an  old  man,  and  when  the  time  of 
his  death  drew  near,  he  called  Frithiof  to  his  side.  "  I 
have  known  you  from  the  first,"  he  said.  "  I  have  tested 
you  and  found  you  ever  as  true  as  you  were  brave.  In  a 

297 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

little  while  Ingeborg  shall  be  your  own.  Love  her  well 
and  care  for  my  child,  who  is  to  be  king  in  my  stead." 
So  it  was  that  Frithiof  gained  the  beautiful  Ingeborg  for 
his  wife.  He  guarded  the  kingdom  until  the  child  was  of 
an  age  to  govern  it;  then  he  went  away  with  Ingeborg 
to  a  kingdom  of  his  own  which  he  had  won  in  battle. 


HOW    ALEXANDER    DID    BATTLE 


The  stories  that  have  been  briefly  given  here  are  only 
a  few  of  the  many  that  were  the  delight  of  the  people 
of  the  days  of  chivalry.  One  other  sort  of  writing 
pleased  them  greatly,  namely,  that  which  took  for  its 
subject  the  deeds  of  Alexander  the  Great,  or  some  other 
worthy  of  classical  times.  It  is  true  that  any  one  of 
these  heroes  would  have  been  amazed  at  the  actions  as- 
cribed to  him  by  the  writers;  but  that  did  not  matter 
to  the  people  who  listened  to  the  romances  and  appar- 

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Schools  and  Literature 

ently  found  it  quite  as  satisfactory  to  make  Alexander 
the  hero  of  a  good  story  as  any  other  man. 

From  the  German  comes  the  "  beast  epic/'  the  story 
of  wicked  Reynard  the  fox  who  is  always  playing  tricks 
on  Bruin  the  bear,  Tybert  the  cat,  Isegrim  the  wolf,  and 
the  other  animals.  It  is  really  a  satire  on  the  state  of 
Germany  in  the  Middle  Ages ;  but  the  best  way  to  enjoy  it 
is  to  forget  that  it  is  anything  but  a  good  story  and  read 
it  purely  for  the  fun  of  it.  By  the  way,  it  is  because  of  this 
story  that  even  to  this  day  we  call  the  fox  Reynard. 

Another  fashion  of  writing  about  animals  is  shown  in 
the  "  bestiaries,"  or  beast  books.  A  chapter  in  a  bestiary 
described  some  remarkable  act  of  a  beast,  such  as  was 
never  seen  in  the  Middle  Ages  or  at  any  other  time,  and 
drew  from  it  an  elaborate  moral.  The  following  is  taken 
from  the  Ancren  Riwle,  and  its  natural  history  as  well  as 
its  moral  was  probably  believed  most  implicitly  by  the 
recluses  for  whom  it  was  written:  — 

The  pelican  is  a  lean  bird,  so  peevish  and  so  wrathful  that 
often,  in  her  anger,  she  killeth  her  own  young  ones  when  they 
molest  her,  and  then,  soon  after,  she  is  very  sorry,  and  maketh 
great  moan,  and  smiteth  herself  with  her  bill  wherewith  she  slew 
her  young,  and  draweth  blood  out  of  her  breast,  and  with  the 
blood  she  then  quickeneth  her  slain  birds.  This  pelican  is  the 

299 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

peevish  recluse.  Her  birds  are  her  good  works,  which  she  often 
slayeth  with  the  bill  of  sharp  wrath;  and  when  she  hath  so  done, 
she,  as  the  pelican  doth,  quickly  repents,  and  with  her  own  bill 
pecks  her  breast ;  that  is,  with  confession  of  her  mouth  where- 
with she  sinned  and  slew  her  good  works,  draweth  the  blood  of 
sin  out  of  her  breast,  that  is,  of  the  heart  in  which  is  the  life  of 
the  soul,  and  thus  shall  then  quicken  her  slain  birds,  which  are 
her  works. 

A  delightful  old  book  called  The  Voyages  and  Travels 
of  Sir  yohn  Mandeville  was  a  great  favorite.  It  describes 
the  way  to  Jerusalem  and  purports  to  have  been  written 
as  a  guidebook  for  those  who  wished  to  make  the  pil- 
grimage. When  people  read  it,  they  felt,  as  in  watching 
the  mystery  plays,  that  they  were  gaining  something  re- 
ligiously and  also  having  an  exceedingly  good  time. 
"Sir  John"  sees  as  many  marvels  as  Sindbad  the  sailor. 
By  the  Dead  Sea  he  finds  apples  that  are  fair  to  look 
upon,  but  within  are  nothing  but  ashes  and  cinders.  He 
gazes  at  people  with  ears  that  hang  down  to  their  knees, 
upon  hens  that  bear  wool,  upon  pigmies,  giants,  and 
griffins.  He  closes  his  book  with  the  request  that  all  its 
readers  will  pray  for  him  as  he  will  pray  for  them;  and 
surely  a  man  who  has  written  so  entertainingly  has  a 
right  to  ask  the  favor  of  those  who  enjoy  his  book. 

300 


Schools  and  Literature 

The  crusades  gave  rise  of  course  to  tales  and  roman- 
ces without  number.  In  one  some  returning  crusaders 
brought  with  them  an  image  of  the  Virgin  Mary.  Sud- 


SIR    JOHN    MANDEVILLE 

denly  it  became  so  heavy  that  they  could  not  carry  it. 
Therefore  they  stopped  and  built  a  church  for  it  on  the 
spot.  Another  story,  coming  from  Burgundy,  said  that  a 
long-bearded  crusader,  sick  and  travel- worn,  appeared  at 

301 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

his  old  home  in  the  garb  of  a  pilgrim.  The  house  was 
full  of  rejoicing,  for  its  mistress,  who  had  waited  many 
weary  years  in  the  hope  that  her  husband  would  return, 
was  now  about  to  marry  a  second  time.  She  had  always 
kept  half  of  a  gold  ring  that  she  and  her  husband  had 
divided;  and  now  he  produced  the  other  half.  There 
was  no  second  marriage,  and  the  wife  and  her  long  lost 
husband  lived  together  again  in  great  happiness.  But  it 
seemed  that  the  crusader  had  been  taken  captive  by  the 
Saracens  and  had  only  been  allowed  to  go  home  on  con- 
dition of  returning  to  captivity  if  he  could  not  find  money 
for  his  ransom.  The  money  could  not  be  raised.  He 
said  a  sorrowful  farewell  to  his  wife  and  went  back  to 
Saladin.  When  the  generous  Saracen  heard  the  story,  he 
bade  that  the  honest  man  be  set  free.  "  But  name  your 
oldest  son  for  me/1  he  said,  "and  let  your  coat  of  arms 
be  bells  and  crescents." 

The  writings  of  the  Middle  Ages  may  be  divided  into 
two  classes;  those  written  in  Latin,  which  are  generally 
dull  and  uninteresting,  and  those  written  in  the  languages 
of  the  different  peoples,  which  are  generally  bright  and 
entertaining.  In  most  of  the  countries  that  had  been 
ruled  by  the  Romans,  especially  Italy,  France,  and  Spain, 
the  people  spoke  what  are  called  the  Romance  lan- 

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Schools  and  Literature 

guages.  These  were  more  or  less  like  that  of  the  Ro- 
mans, but  far  simpler ;  for  instance,  the  Latin  word  for 
mother,  mater,  became  in  French  mere;  and  instead  of 
saying  matris  for  of  the  mother  and  matri  for  to  the  mother •, 
people  used  prepositions  and  said  de  la  mere  and  a  la  mere. 
It  was  much  easier  to  remember  a  few  prepositions  than 
to  learn  how  to  decline  every  noun.  Verbs  and  other 
parts  of  speech  were  gradually  simplified  in  somewhat 
the  same  fashion ;  and  by  the  eleventh  century  there 
were  languages  which  were  far  more  manageable  for 
light  poems  and  stories  than  the  more  dignified  Latin. 
The  use  of  rhyme  and  accent  in  poetry  had  come  in. 
No  one  knows  just  how  this  came  about;  but  it  is  cer- 
tain that  the  taste  of  people  had  gradually  changed,  and 
now,  instead  of  liking  the  Latin  fashion  of  "  quantity," 
that  is,  of  giving  to  each  syllable  a  fixed  length  of  time, 
either  long  or  short,  they  preferred  to  accent  certain 
syllables  of  a  line  and  end  it  with  the  words  or  syllables 
that  rhymed.  Then  it  was  that  the  troubadours  of  south- 
ern France  and,  a  little  later,  the  trouveurs,  or  trouveres, 
of  northern  France,  began  to  compose  their  songs.  The 
troubadours  used  the  form  of  Old  French  that  was 
called  the  langue  d'ocy  because  in  southern  France 
"yes"  was  "oc."  In  northern  France  "yes"  was  "ceil," 

3°3 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  therefore  the  northern  tongue  was  called  the  langue 
d'ceil. 

The  troubadours  composed  chiefly  love  songs  and  bat- 
tle songs.  Everybody  seemed  to  love  poetry,  and  any 
wanderer  was  welcome  at  the  most  lordly  castle  if  he 
could  only  compose  verses  and  sing  them  to  the  music 
of  the  harp.  A  knight  would  have  thought  it  far  beneath 
him  to  joust  with  a  common  man ;  but  to  sing  songs  to- 
gether was  quite  a  different  matter,  and  the  proudest 
noble  would  not  have  found  it  any  disgrace  to  mingle 
his  voice  with  that  of  a  beggar.  After  a  tournament  was 
over  and  the  prizes  had  been  distributed,  the  lady  of  the 
castle  often  opened  what  was  called  a  Court  of  Love. 
Here  knights  and  even  sovereigns  vied  with  one  another 
in  singing  extempore  verses.  Richard  the  Lionhearted 
was  as  proud  of  his  skill  as  a  troubadour  as  of  his  prowess 
in  battle.  At  the  close  of  the  Court  of  Love,  the  ladies 
discussed  at  length  the  merits  of  the  different  singers, 
and  gave  to  the  most  deserving  prizes  which  were  as 
much  valued  as  those  of  the  tournament. 

Some  of  our  best  accounts  of  tournaments,  as,  in- 
deed, of  battles  and  many  other  things,  came  from  the 
pen  of  Froissart,  a  French  clergyman  who  wrote  at  the 
end  of  the  fourteenth  century.  A  nobleman  employed 

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Schools  and  Literature 

him  to  write  a  history  of  the  wars  of  the  time;  and 
Froissart  mounted  his  horse  and  ambled  along  from  one 
place  to  another,  wherever  a  battle  had  been  fought  or 
any  other  event  of  special  interest  had  come  to  pass.  He 


THE    PALACE    OF    LOVE 


305 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

talked  to  people  and  gathered  all  the  information  that 
he  could  and  then  wrote  it  in  his  Chronicles.  He  does 
not  care  what  caused  the  war  or  who  wins,  and  he  is 
just  as  jubilant  over  an  English  victory  as  a  French ; 
the  one  thing  that  he  wants  to  do  is  to  get  hold  of  a 
good  story  and  tell  it.  It  is  he  who  paints  such  a  pic- 
ture of  the  Black  Prince  humbly  serving  the  French 
king,  who  has  been  taken  prisoner  at  the  battle  of  Poi- 
tiers ;  and  it  is  he  who  describes  so  vividly  the  coming 
of  the  six  wealthy  citizens  of  conquered  Calais  to  Ed- 
ward III,  in  their  shirts,  barefooted,  and  with  ropes 
about  their  necks,  that  by  their  death  the  anger  of  the 
king  might  be  appeased  and  their  fellow  citizens  for- 
given. Just  at  the  moment  when  the  reader  despairs  of 
their  being  saved,  Froissart  brings  in  Queen  Philippa 
with  so  earnest  a  plea  for  mercy  that  the  king  cannot 
refuse  to  pardon  them.  Indeed,  whenever  one  discovers 
a  particularly  lively  account  of  any  event  that  came 
within  the  ken  of  Froissart,  it  is  almost  sure  to  have 
been  written  by  his  pen.  It  is  no  wonder  that,  as  he 
roamed  about  from  castle  to  castle,  telling  his  tales 
wherever  he  went,  he  always  found  a  welcome. 

About  a  century  later  than  the  time  when  the  trou- 
badours began  to  flourish  in  southern  France,  the  trou- 

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Schools  and  Literature 

veres  in  northern  France  were  singing  in  the  langue 
d'oeil,  and  were  great  favorites  at  the  courts  of  the 
dukes  of  Normandy.  The  Normans  were  descendants 
of  the  fierce  vikings  of  an  earlier  day  who  had  settled 
in  France.  They  had  lost  none  of  their  boldness  and 
daring,  but  they  had  adopted  French  customs  and  the 
French  language.  From  these  trouveres  came  gay  little 
tales  of  love  and  adventure  called  fabliaux,  many  of  the 
mystery  plays  that  have  already  been  mentioned,  and 
brilliant  romances  of  chivalry.  The  craze  for  these  ro- 
mances and  for  even  the  feebler  imitations  of  them  that 
were  composed  somewhat  later  was  so  intense  and  lasted 
so  long  that  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury Cervantes  of  Spain  wrote  his  famous  Don  {Quixote 
as  a  parody  on  them.  The  good  old  Don  is  described  as 
having  read  so  many  of  these  productions  that  his  brain 
is  touched,  and  with  a  helmet  of  pasteboard,  an  ancient 
suit  of  rusty  armor,  a  farm  horse  for  a  steed  of  war,  and 
a  country  laborer  for  a  squire,  he  set  out  in  search  of 
adventures.  He  found  them  in  plenty.  To  his  disor- 
dered mind  some  windmills  on  a  plain  seemed  to  be 
evil  giants.  One  can  guess  the  result  of  his  valiant  at- 
tack upon  them.  A  flock  of  sheep  moving  toward  him 
he  is  convinced  is  an  immense  army  of  knights,  and  he 

307 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

charges  on  them  most  valiantly.  It  is  no  wonder  that 
this  book  put  an  end  to  the  composing  of  romances  and 
the  fashion  of  reading  them. 

In  Germany,  too,  between  the  twelfth  century  and 
the  fourteenth,  there  were  many  poets.  Some  sang  of 
Arthur  and  the  Holy  Grail  and  Charlemagne  and  the 
Nibelungs;  but  far  more  tenderly  and  elegantly  and 

with  much  better  taste 
than  the  poets  of  the 
langue  d'oc  or  those  of 
the  langue  d'ceil.  Some 
of  the  German  poets 
were  called  minnesingers, 
or  love-singers,  and  their 
poems  are  really  dainty 
and  graceful  and  far 

more  refined  in  feeling  and  expression  than  the  rather 
coarse  songs  of  the  Courts  of  Love.  Knights,  priests, 
wandering  students,  kings,  and  simple  country  folk  met 
together  in  the  joy  of  poetry  and  music,  and  sang  of  love 
and  sorrow  and  the  beauties  of  spring  with  a  pureness 
and  freshness  that  hold  their  charm  even  to  this  day. 

The  names  of  two  great  authors  shine  out  from  the 
Middle  Ages,  the  Italian  Dante  and  the  English  Chau- 

308 


MINNESINGERS 


Schools  and  Literature 

cer.  Dante  wrote  about  1300  his  famous  Divine  Comedy. 
In  this  poem  he  passes  through  the  gates  of  hell  under 
the  guidance  of  Virgil.  He  visits  one  "  circle "  after 
another,  each  occupied  by  some  one  class  of  criminals, 
and  sees  the  terrible  punishments  inflicted  upon  them. 
He  then  enters  purgatory ;  and  here  sinners  are  expiat- 
ing the  wrongs  that  they  have  committed.  Those  who 
have  been  greedy  suffer  constantly  from  hunger  and 
thirst.  Those  who  held  their  heads  too  high  in  their 
pride  are  dragged  down  by  heavy  weights.  Those  who 
were  lazy  are  now  forced  to  run  about  continually. 
Each  penance  is  adapted  to  the  fault.  On  top  of  the 
mountain  of  purgatory  is  the  maiden  Beatrice  whom 
Dante  had  loved  even  as  a  child  and  had  lost  by  her 
early  death.  She  now  becomes  his  guide  and  leads  him 
through  the  nine  heavens,  where  he  meets  the  great  and 
good  of  all  ages  and  finally  is  permitted  a  vision  of  God 
and  his  angels.  The  poem  is  great  because  its  language 
is  so  rich  and  beautiful,  because  its  characters  are  alive 
and  its  pictures  so  vivid  that  an  artist  could  work  from 
them,  and,  most  of  all,  because  it  is  so  complete  in  its 
plan  and  in  every  detail  as  to  show  a  marvelous  imag- 
ination. 

It  is  said  that  the  good  folk  of  Florence  used  to  point 

3°9 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

at  Dante  as  he  went  along  the  street  and  whisper  half 
fearfully,  "That 's  the  man  who  has  been  in  hell "  ;  but 
I  fancy  that  people  said  of  Chaucer,  "  That 's  the  man 
who  sees  everything  and  enjoys  whatever  he  sees/'  for 
he  seems  to  take  such  genuine  pleasure  in  every  com- 
mon sight  and  in  studying  every  person.  In  his  Canter- 
bury Tales,  wherein  a  large  company  of  all  sorts  of  peo- 
ple go  on  pilgrimage  to  the  shrine  of  Thomas  a  Becket 
at  Canterbury,  he  is  apparently  as  much  interested  in 
one  as  in  another,  but  he  treats  each  one  in  different 
fashion.  He  looks  with  respect  upon  the  "  verray  parfit 
gentil  knyght,"  and  he  has  a  kindly  word  for  the  gay 
young  squire  who  is  singing  or  whistling  from  morning 
to  night.  He  makes  us  see  the  coy  and  dainty  ways  of 
the  nun,  and  he  really  cannot  help  making  a  sly  jest  at 
her  French,  which  was  not  that  of  Paris,  but 

After  the  scole  of  Stratford-atte-Bowc, — 

a  town  in  England.  He  is  a  bit  indignant  at  the  friar,  who 
"  knew  the  tavernes  well  in  every  town,"  and  is  better  ac- 
quainted with  innkeepers  and  barmaids  than  with  lepers 
and  beggars ;  but  he  has  a  warm  sympathy  with  the  poor 
clerk  who  would  rather  have  books  than  gorgeous  robes ; 
and  he  speaks  most  reverently  of  the  good  parish  priest 
who  loved  to  give  to  the  poor  and  who  never  scorned 

310 


Schools  and  Literature 

even  a  sinful  man.  In  the  poem  these  good  folk  tell  sto- 
ries, stories  of  chivalry,  of  the  crafty  fox  who  stole  Chan- 
ticleer, of  magic  swords,  of  fairies  and  giants  and  en- 
chanted steeds;  and  in  each  the  author  is  at  home  and 
enjoying  himself.  He  drops  in  so  many  little  confiden- 
tial speeches  to  the  reader  that  one  feels  as  if  the  poet 
were  right  at  his  elbow  instead  of  being  five  centuries 
away. 

These  are  snatches  of  the  writings  that  come  to  mind 
first  when  one  thinks  of  the  days  of  knighthood.  Leav- 
ing out  the  two  great  names  of  Dante  and  Chaucer, 
there  is  little  that  has  any  great  excellence ;  but  it  is  en- 
tertaining and  rich  in  promise,  and  the  promise  has 
been  nobly  fulfilled. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

SCIENCE  AND   MEDICINE 

THE  good  folk  of  the  Middle  Ages  were  as  much  inter- 
ested in  the  world  of  nature  around  them  as  are  the 
people  of  to-day.  They  wondered  what  made  lightning 
and  thunder,  why  men  died  in  the  water  and  fish  in  the 
air,  what  would  cure  their  various  illnesses,  why  the 
moon  rises,  where  the  sun  goes  when  it  sets,  and  hun- 
dreds of  other  questions.  Most  of  the  studying  of  the  day 
was  carried  on  in  monasteries,  as  has  been  said  before, 
and  the  Venerable  Bede  and  others  wrote  long  treatises 
on  nature,  together  with  some  remarkable  explanations 
of  its  mysteries.  In  the  twelfth  century  numerous  univer- 
sities were  founded ;  and  by  the  time  that  they  were  well 
established  and  had  become  strong  and  powerful,  a  fresh 
supply  of  knowledge  came  to  them  through  the  Saracens. 
Long  before  this,  the  Saracens  had  translated  into  their 
own  language,  the  Arabic,  the  works  of  the  learned 
Greeks  of  centuries  earlier,  including  especially  what 
they  knew  of  stars  and  planets  and  comets  and  eclipses. 
Many  Saracens  were  now  living  about  the  Mediterranean 

312 


Science  and  Medicine 


Sea,  and  through  them  manuscripts  were  brought  into 
Europe  and  translated  from  the  Arabic  into  the  Euro- 
pean tongues. 

Astronomy  was  looked  upon  as  an  exceedingly  prac- 
tical study,  because  it  was  by  this  science  that  the  festi- 
vals of  the  Church 
were  dated.  The  as- 
tronomers of  the  time 
knew  something  of 
eclipses  and  they  had 
tables  of  stars  and 
planets.  They  studied 
the  observations  made 
by  the  wise  men  of 
the  East  for  many 
centuries,  and  really 
learned  a  great  deal. 
Unfortunately,  they 
made  one  great  mis- 
take. For  four  hundred  years  it  has  been  known  that  the 
earth  and  the  other  planets  revolve  around  the  sun.  In  the 
Middle  Ages,  however,  people  believed  that  the  sun  re- 
volved about  the  earth.  The  sky,  they  thought,  was  a  vast 
hollow  sphere  which  revolved  once  a  day.  It  was  because 


AN    ASTRONOMER 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

of  this  mistake  that  when  they  tried  to  reason  about 
what  they  had  seen,  their  conclusions  were  all  wrong,  no 
matter  how  correct  their  observations  might  have  been. 
Now  when  people  believed  that  the  whole  starry  uni- 
verse was  made  for  their  especial  benefit,  it  was  not  very 
unreasonable  to  take  it  for  granted  that  the  stars,  their  . 
arrangement  in  the  sky,  and  their  movements  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  human  affairs.  Anything  unusual  was 
always  alarming.  Comets  were  a  source  of  terror.  No 
one  knew  whence  they  came  or  wrhither  they  were 
going.  They  were  uncanny,  and  even  the  educated  feared 
some  awful  disaster  when  one  of  these  fiery  wanderers 
appeared  in  the  sky.  In  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, a  large  comet  was  seen  which  terrified  all  Europe. 
Even  before  its  appearance  people  were  in  dread,  for  the 
Turks  had  crossed  the  Hellespont,  and  there  was  reason 
to  believe  that  they  would  overrun  the  Continent.  Then 
came  the  added  horror  of  the  comet,  and  no  one  could 
tell  what  awful  calamity  this  might  portend.  It  is  no 
wonder  that  the  Pope  ordered  the  church  bells  to  be 
rung  at  noon,  and  the  Ave  Maria  to  be  said  three  times 
a  day  instead  of  twice.  To  this  prayer  was  added  the 
petition,  "  Lord,  save  us  from  the  Devil,  the  Turk,  and 
the  Comet." 

8*4 


Science  and  Medicine 

Comets,  fortunately,  did  not  appear  very  often,  but  it 
was  believed  that  the  other  heavenly  bodies,  also,  had  an 
effect  upon  people  and  could  make  them  successful  or 
unsuccessful.  A  man  who  could  interpret  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  heavens  was  called  an  astrologer,  and  the 
science,  or  make-believe  science,  was  called  astrology. 
When  a  child  was  born,  the  father  hurried  away  to  an 
astrologer,  if  he  could  afford  to  consult  one,  to  have 
what  was  called  a  horoscope  calculated,  that  is,  to  have 
its  future  life  predicted  according  to  the  aspect  of  the 
heavens  at  its  birth.  The  most  important  constellations 
are  situated  in  a  wide  belt  around  the  heavens  called  the 
zodiac,  and  are  therefore  called  the  signs  of  the  zodiac. 
There  are  twelve  of  these  constellations:  Aries,  or  the 
ram ;  Gemini,  or  the  twins ;  Leo,  the  lion ;  Capricornus, 
or  the  goat;  and  others.  The  one  which  was  in  the 
ascendant,  or  just  risen  above  the  eastern  horizon,  at  the 
time  of  the  child's  birth,  was  supposed  to  have  great  in- 
fluence upon  his  life.  But  this  was  only  the  beginning 
of  the  astrologer's  calculations.  He  fixed  a  point /in  the 
sky  according  to  the  position  of  the  sun  and  moon  at 
the  time,  and,  beginning  at  that,  he  divided  the  heavens 
into  twelve  "  houses/'  These  houses  were  divided  and 
subdivided.  To  each  house  some  planet  was  assigned, 

3*5 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  every  planet  had  its  special  influence.  Jupiter,  for 
instance,  had  power  to  give  one  riches  and  honors,  Venus 
would  bestow  love  and  warm  friendship.  If,  then,  Ju- 
piter chanced  to  be  in  the  house  assigned  to  him  and  in 
a  favorable  sign,  his  influence  upon  the  child  would  be 
so  strong  that  he  could  hardly  help  winning  wealth  and 
distinction.  People  consulted  astrologers  about  the  proper 
time  to  begin  a  journey  or  a  business  undertaking,  about 
a  favorable  day  for  a  marriage  or  the  coronation  of  a 
king,  and,  indeed,  so  far  as  they  could  afford  it,  about 
an  endless  number  of  even  the  smallest  affairs  of  life. 

Even  in  medicine  the  position  of  the  planets  was  of 
the  utmost  importance.  When  a  doctor  was  sent  for, 
he  came  on  horseback  with  the  bells  on  his  bridle  rein 
jingling  so  merrily  that  he  could  be  heard  a  long  way 
off.  An  assistant  followed  him  and  as  many  servants  as 
his  purse  would  permit,  bearing  five  or  six  instruments 
and  numerous  sorts  of  ointment.  When  he  reached  the 
home  of  the  sick  man,  his  first  business  was  not  to 
count  his  pulse  or  note  his  temperature,  but  to  inquire 
under  what  constellation  he  was  born.  With  this  know- 
ledge he  would  set  to  work  to  ascertain  what  remedy 
would  be  of  service.  But,  however  valuable  the  medi- 
cine might  be  and  however  much  it  might  be  needed, 

316 


Science  and  Medicine 

it  must  hot  be  taken  when  the  moon  was  in  an  unfa- 
vorable sign;  for  then  it  would  do  harm  rather  than 
good.  When  an  epidemic  appeared,  it  was  of  course  laid 
to  the  stars,  or  the  power  of  evil  spirits.  Two  unfavor- 
able planets  meeting  in  the  same  degree  of  the  zodiac 
would  account  for  any  pestilence,  or  so  people  thought. 
There  was,  however,  one  other  way  of  explaining  the  ap- 
pearance of  any  general  illness,  and  that  was  to  lay  it  to  the 
Jews.  In  France,  Germany,  and  Italy,  Jews  were  many 
times  accused  of  poisoning  the  wells  or  even  the  air, 
and  were  either  imprisoned  or  put  to  death  on  this 
charge. 

Some  of  the  medicines  of  the  time  were  most  absurd, 
and  many  were  revolting.  Gold  filings  were  thought 
good  for  leprosy,  and  so  was  an  adder  boiled  with  leeks. 
A  more  agreeable  remedy  for  the  illness  of  a  child  was 
to  weigh  the  child  and  then  offer  up  at  some  shrine  its 
weight  in  bread  or  grain  or  cheese  or  wax.  Many  herbs 
were  used,  such  as  sage,  wormwood,  and  pennyroyal. 
Medicines  were  hardly  expected  to  do  much  good  of 
themselves.  To  make  a  dose  powerful,  the  sick  man 
must  repeat  a  certain  Psalm  twelve  times  together  with 
several  Paternosters  while  the  medicine  was  being  pre- 
pared. It  was  far  more  likely  to  effect  a  cure  if  he  could 

31? 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

take  it  at  the  shrine  of  some  saint.  With  some  remedies 
one  should  always  repeat  a  charm. 

Physicians  are  described  as  wearing  expensive  robes 
of  silk  with  trimmings  of  fur.  "  Physic  "  in  Piers  Plow- 
man wears  a  hood  richly  trimmed  with  fur,  and  gold 
buttons  on  his  cloak.  They  demanded  large  fees  and  re- 
ceived them.  In  other  cases  a  man  might  choose  whether 
to  purchase  or  to  do  without;  but  in  illness  there  was 
left  him  only  the  highwayman's  choice,  "Your  money 
or  your  life/*  Chaucer  makes  a  fling  at  these  exorbitant 
charges  and  says  of  the  learned  doctor  among  his  Can- 
terbury pilgrims, 

For  gold  in  phisik  is  a  cordial, 
Therfor  he  loved  gold  in  special. 

Poor  folk  had  not  the  money  necessary  to  buy  their 
lives  of  these  great  doctors,  and  therefore  they  went 
with  their  ailments  to  the  barber.  He  was  permitted  by 
law  to  apply  plasters  and  ointments  to  wounds  that  did 
not  threaten  to  become  dangerous,  and  often  to  give 
simple  remedies.  In  most  diseases,  the  first  treatment 
was  to  bleed  the  patient,  and  the  barber's  pole  of  to-day 
is  a  reminder  of  the  custom.  In  France,  before  any  se- 
rious operation  could  be  performed,  the  bishop  or  the 
feudal  lord  of  the  patient  had  to  be  consulted.  Talis- 

318 


Science  and  Medicine 


mans  were  made  use  of  for  remedies  or  to  keep  away 
illness.  These  consisted  of  a  stone  or  a  piece  of  metal 
upon  which  was  cut  a  figure  or  an  inscription.  In  the 
earlier  part  of  the  Middle  Ages,  runes  were  often  used 
for  the  inscriptions. 
These  were  only  the 
letters  of  the  earliest 
northern  alphabet ;  but 
so  few  people  could 
read  that  they  were 
looked  upon  as  some- 
thing having  magical 
powers.  In  later  times, 
most  talismans  were 
brought  from  the  East, 
and  were  engraved  with 
inscriptions  in  Persian 


or 


A    DENTAL    OPERATION 


Arabic.  Even  in 
health  these  tokens  were  highly  valued.  A  species  of 
charm  known  as  a  philter  was  supposed  to  have  the  power 
to  arouse  love.  Sometimes  a  magic  drink  for  the  same 
purpose  was  prepared  and  given  to  the  person  in  question ; 
but  oftener  the  one  who  wished  to  become  beloved  wore 
a  philter  consisting  of  powdered  loadstone,  nail-parings, 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  human  blood,  or  other  absurd  combinations.  If  a 
man  wished  to  win  honor,  he  might  cut  the  image  of 
Jupiter  on  a  white  stone  or  a  piece  of  tin;  and  if  this 
was  done  when  the  planets  were  favorable,  he  would  be 
sure  to  gain  his  wish.  Of  course  there  were  stories  upon 
stories  of  cures  wrought  in  illness  by  such  means. 
Roger  Bacon,  who  was  perhaps  the  most  sensible  scien- 
tific man  of  his  age,  declared  that  charms  and  talismans 
were  of  much  value;  but  he  explained  that  this  was  not 
because  they  acted  as  remedies,  but  because  they  made 
the  patient  calm  and  hopeful  and  thus  aided  in  his 
recovery. 

It  is  a  wonder,  however,  that  when  people  were  sick, 
they  should  ever  have  expected  charms  or  anything  else 
to  be  of  service,  for  so  many  illnesses  were  thought  to 
be  caused  by  witchcraft.  Some  persons  were  believed  to 
possess  what  was  known  as  the  "  evil  eye."  Whoever 
first  met  their  gaze  in  the  morning  was  sure  to  pine 
away  and  die;  and,  indeed,  some  evil  was  likely  to  be- 
fall one  upon  whom  they  looked  at  any  hour  of  the  day. 
If  a  man  wished  to  take  the  life  of  an  enemy,  he  could 
do  so  conveniently  by  driving  a  nail  or  a  wooden  peg 
into  a  wall,  pronouncing  the  name  of  the  victim  at  each 
blow.  Another  way  was  to  shoot  an  arrow  into  the  air, 

320 


Science  and  Medicine 

oJV  j 

praying  to  some  demon  to  direct  its  flight  to  the  person 
named.  This  arrow  would  leave  a  wound  which  was  in- 
visible, to  be  sure,  but  which  would  certainly  cause 
death  within  three  days.  Another  method  of  ridding 
one's  self  of  a  foe  was  to  make  an  image  of  him  in  wax. 
Under  the  right  arm  of  the  image  one  must  place  the 
heart  of  a  swallow,  and  under  the  left  arm  its  liver. 
Whatever  injury  was  done  to  the  figure  was  supposed  to 
be  felt  by  the  person  whom  it  represented.  If  a  needle 
was  pushed  into  its  side,  the  person  was  expected  to  feel 
a  sharp  pain  in  the  side.  In  case  of  sudden  death,  peo- 
ple thought  first  of  witchcraft,  and  it  was  sometimes 
dangerous  to  the  safety  of  even  an  innocent  man  if  his 
enemy  died  too  unexpectedly.  It  was  far  safer  to  build 
a  fire  of  wood  and  vervain,  set  the  waxen  image  before 
it,  and  let  it  melt.  Then  the  person  would  slowly  but 
surely  waste  away.  This  belief  in  the  waxen  image  was 
so  firmly  fixed  that  if  a  man  had  a  hawk  which  he 
could  not  succeed  in  managing,  he  would  sometimes 
send  a  waxen  image  of  it  to  the  shrine  of  some  saint 
that  he  might  have  better  success. 

Besides  the  danger  of  being  bewitched,  there  were 
the  four  "humors,"  or  qualities,  to  be  reckoned  with. 
All  things  are  made  of  earth,  air,  fire,  and  water,  but  in 

321 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

varying  proportions,  declared  the  wisdom  of  the  Mid- 
dle Ages.  Earth  has  the  humor  of  being  cold  and  dry ; 
water  of  being  cold  and  moist ;  air  of  being  hot  and 
moist ;  and  fire  of  being  hot  and  dry.  It  went  on  fur- 
ther to  say  that  earth  corresponded  to  autumn  and  the 
melancholic  temperament;  water  to  winter  and  the 
phlegmatic ;  air  to  spring  and  the  sanguine ;  and  fire  to 
summer  and  the  choleric.  If  these  humors  were  per- 
fectly balanced,  the  person  was  well  —  and  to  this  day 
we  keep  the  phrase  "good-humored"  —  but  if  there 
chanced  to  be  too  much  of  any  one  of  them,  illness 
was  the  result ;  and  it  was  the  business  of  the  doctor  to 
decide  which  humor  was  in  excess. 

Mixtures  to  cure  diseases  were  often  prepared  by  the 
alchemists,  or  chemists  of  the  time.  With  the  chanting 
of  charms  and  the  drawing  of  magic  circles  an  alche- 
mist would  prepare  a  draught  warranted  to  heal  a  sick 
man,  give  pleasant  dreams,  or  make  one  invulnerable. 
To  the  common  folk,  their  work  was  so  mysterious  and 
the  sights  and  sounds  from  their  laboratories  so  strange 
and  awe-inspiring  that  whenever  they  passed  the  house 
of  an  alchemist,  they  crossed  themselves  and  prayed  to 
be  delivered  from  the  power  of  the  Devil.  They  were 
ready  to  believe  the  most  absurd  stories  of  the  abilities 

322 


Science  and  Medicine 

of  these  men.  One  was  said  to  be  able  to  call  back  to 
his  purse  whatever  coins  he  might  have  paid  out  of  it. 
Another  was  believed  to  have  made  a  wooden  image 
that  would  rise  from  its  seat  and  open  the  door  when- 
ever a  knock  was  heard.  Most  mysterious  and  most 


A   GERMAN    ALCHEMIST 


popular  of  all  such  wonders  was  the  brazen  head  which 
Roger  Bacon  was  said  to  have  made.  Success  in  his  un- 
dertakings and  a  vast  amount  of  knowledge  were  to  come 
to  him  if  he  only  heard  it  speak.  When  he  had  become 
too  weary  to  listen  any  longer,  he  set  an  assistant  to 
watch  it.  While  the  master  slept,  the  head  suddenly 

323 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

spoke.  "Time  is,"  it  said.  "There  is  no  use  in  arous- 
ing my  master  to  hear  what  every  one  knows/'  thought 
the  assistant;  and  he  let  Bacon  sleep  on.  The  head 
spoke  again,  and  said,  "  Time  was."  This,  too,  the  as- 
sistant thought  was  of  no  importance.  Half  an  hour 
later  it  spoke  for  the  third  time.  It  said,  "Time  is  past," 
fell  from  its  place,  and  was  broken  to  fragments ;  and  so 
it  was  that  Bacon  himself,  its  maker,  never  heard  it  speak. 
The  alchemists  experimented  on  various  substances, 
treated  them  by  fire,  then  by  water,  then  united  them, 
and  carefully  noted  the  results.  Thus  far  they  were  in 
the  true  path  of  science;  but  they  could  make  little  ad- 
vance beyond  this,  because  they  began  their  work  with 
some  false  notions  which  they  could  never  lay  aside. 
They  believed,  for  instance,  that  earth,  air,  fire,  and 
water  were  peopled  by  demons;  and  when  the  facts  did 
not  agree  with  their  theories,  they  explained  matters 
by  saying  that  the  demons  were  interfering.  Of  course 
they  believed  in  the  influence  of  the  stars,  and  often 
they  tried  to  connect  the  stars  and  the  earth  by 
odors.  If  a  man  wished  to  secure  the  influence  of  the 
sun,  for  instance,  he  mixed  saffron,  amber,  musk,  clove, 
incense,  the  brain  of  an  eagle,  and  the  blood  of  a  cock, 
and  burned  them. 

324 


Science  and  Medicine 

The  alchemists  had  three  aims  in  particular.  One  was 
to  discover  a  "universal  solvent/'  that  is,  some  substance 
that  would  dissolve  everything  into  its  elements.  The 
second  was  to  make  an  elixir  that  would  enable  a  per- 
son to  keep  youth  and  life  as  long  as  he  chose.  Even  the 
reasonable  Roger  Bacon  thought  this  was  quite  possible ; 
and  after  the  discovery  of  America,  people  felt  sure  that 
somewhere  in  the  wonderful  new  land  the  elixir  would 
be  found.  Many  believed  that  the  marvelous  draught 
would  not  be  compounded  by  an  alchemist,  but  was  only 
the  water  of  some  magic  fountain.  When  Ponce  de 
Leon  made  his  voyage  to  America  in  1512,  he  set  out 
in  eager  hope  of  finding  this  fountain  of  youth,  for  he 
was  fast  becoming  an  old  man,  and  he  longed  to  be 
young  again. 

The  third  quest  of  the  alchemists  was  to  discover 
what  was  known  as  the  "philosopher's  stone."  They 
thought  that  all  metals  were  made  of  sulphur  and  mer- 
cury, that  in  gold  the  sulphur  and  mercury  were  pure, 
while  in  the  baser  -rrfetals  they  were  more  or  less  corrupt. 
If  the  "  stone "  could  be  discovered,  this  corruption 
could  be  cured  or  driven  away  from  any  metal,  and  pure 
gold  would  remain.  Generation  after  generation  of  al- 
chemists labored  in  this  quest.  Many  of  them  were 

325 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

honest  and  were  trying  their  best  to  make  discoveries 
that  would  be  of  value  to  mankind.  Others  sought  only 
a  method  of  making  gold  and  so  winning  riches  for 
themselves.  Then,  too,  there  were  numerous  rascals  who 
had  a  smattering  of  the  learning  of  the  alchemists  and 
went  about  persuading  people  that  they  could  turn  the 
baser  metals  into  gold  or  silver,  and  getting  money  from 
them  for  sharing  the  secret  of  the  method.  Chaucer 
tells  the  story  of  one  of  these  quacks  who  turned  mer- 
cury into  the  purest  of  silver  before  the  face  and  eyes  of 
a  trustful  priest  and  obtained  forty  pounds  from  him  for 
the  recipe.  The  secret  was  that  he  brought  with  him  a 
beechen  coal  in  which  a  hole  had  been  bored  and  filled 
with  silver  filings.  It  was  easy  to  slip  this  coal  in  with 
the  others  in  such  a  way  that  the  wax  which  stopped  up 
the  hole  would  melt  and  let  the  silver  fall  into  the  cru- 
cible. The  second  trick  of  the  deceiver  was  to  stir  the 
mercury  in  the  crucible  with  a  hollow  rod  in  which  was 
an  ounce  of  silver  filings  kept  in  with  wax  in  the  same 
manner.  After  the  priest  had  paid  his  forty  pounds  and 
the  quack  had  disappeared,  he  tried  his  magical  recipe; 
but  in  spite  of  all  his  efforts  not  a  bit  of  silver  could  be 
found  in  the  crucible. 

The  alchemists  did    not    discover   the   philosopher's 

326 


Science  and  Medicine 

stone,  but  in  their  experiments  they  did  gain  some  use- 
ful knowledge.  Among  other  things  they  discovered 
soap,  they  learned  how  to  separate  silver  from  lead,  and 


AN  ALCHEMIST'S  APPARATUS 

how  to  make  porcelain.  The  Chinese  knew  of  gunpow- 
der many  centuries  earlier ;  but  Roger  Bacon  is  thought 
to  have  learned  that  with  sulphur,  saltpetre,  and  char- 
coal an  explosion  might  be  produced,  and  so  to  have 
discovered  it  anew.  The  ideas  of  some  of  the  alchemists 
ran  far  out  into  the  future.  Bacon  predicted  that  the 

327 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

time  would  come  when  boats  would  move  without  oars, 
and  wagons  without  animals  to  draw  them,  when  men 
would  be  able  to  fly  through  the  air,  and  bridges  with- 
out any  supporting  piers  would  span  the  widest  rivers. 
He  believed,  too,  that  an  elixir  would  be  discovered 
that  would  enable  people  to  live  as  long  as  they 
chose. 

Several  of  Bacon's  predictions  have  long  ago  come  to 
pass ;  but  they  probably  seemed  to  the  good  folk  of  his 
time  far  more  absurd  than  many  strange  things  that  ap- 
peared to  them  a  matter  of  course.  All  through  the  period 
people  of  education  believed  that  the  earth  was  a  sphere  ; 
but  they  were  ready  to  accept  without  question  the  wild- 
est stories  of  what  might  be  seen  in  the  parts  that  were 
unknown  to  them.  In  Africa,  it  was  said,  great  dragons 
were  found  from  whose  brains  precious  stones  might  be 
taken,  and  also  beasts  so  venomous  that  whoever  looked 
them  in  the  face  fell  dead.  It  was  believed  that  tribes 
lived  in  that  country  who  had  three  or  four  eyes  in  their 
foreheads.  Other  tribes  fed  upon  nothing  but  honey- 
suckles dried  in  smoke  by  the  sun.  Ireland  was  the  spe- 
cial country  of  wonders.  In  one  lake,  so  the  story  went, 
a  rod  of  hazel  would  turn  to  ash  and  one  of  ash  to  hazel. 
Another  lake  had  quite  as  amazing  properties,  for  if  a 

328 


Science  and  Medicine 

rod  was  made  to  stand  upright  in  the  water,  the  part  in 
the  earth  became  iron,  that  in  the  water  was  turned  to 
stone,  while  that  above  the  water  was  not  changed.  In 
Ireland,  too,  there  was  said  to  be  a  little  island  whose 
inhabitants  could  never  die.  When  they  were  overcome 
with  the  weaknesses  of  age,  they  had  to  be  carried  else- 
where that  they  might  find  relief  in  death.  In  Finland, 
so  people  thought,-  certain  men  had  the  power  to  raise 
the  wind.  They. tied  knots  in  a  cord,  and  if  they  desired 
a  gentle  breeze;  they  let  out  the  cord  to  one  knot.  For 
a  storm,  they  let  out  to  four  or  five  knots.  Concerning 
India,  people  would  believe  the  most  fantastic  imagin- 
ings. Its  ruler  was  thought  to  be  one  Prester  John,  or 
priest  John,  who  had  governed  the  land  for  many  cen- 
turies. Some  of  his  subjects  were  said  to  be  more  than 
five  cubits  in  height.  Others  had  dogs'  heads  and  barked 
like  dogs.  Near  the  source  of  the  Ganges  were  men  who 
had  no  mouths.  Naturally,  they  neither  ate  nor  drank ; 
but  they  lived  on  the  perfume  of  flowers. 

Concerning  animals  and  plants  there  was  a  sort  of 
imaginative  natural  history  which  was  stated  in  so  au- 
thoritative a  manner  and  with  so  many  details  that  it 
must  have  needed  a  brave  man  to  doubt  its  truth.  "  A 
griffin,"  says  an  old  book,  "  is  a  flying  thing.  Its  head 

329 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

and  wings  are  like  the  eagle's ;  the  rest  of  the  body  is 
like  that  of  a  lion."  The  "  enchirius,"  whatever  that 
may  be,  is  described  as  a  little  fish  half  a  foot  long  which 
clings  to  a  stone  when  a  storm  is  coming,  that  it  may 
not  be  blown  about.  Its  ability  to  cling  must  have  been 
considerable,  for  it  was  said  that  if  it  caught  a  good  hold 
of  a  ship,  it  could  hold  it  perfectly  quiet.  Still  more 
startling  is  the  statement  that  when  a  whale  becomes 
old,  earth  collects  upon  his  body  to  such  an  extent  that 
herbs  and  small  bushes  take  root  and  grow.  Cranes,  it 
was  said,  seat  themselves  comfortably  on  the  ground 
when  they  are  weary;  but  they  always  leave  watchers  on 
guard.  The  watchers  stand  on  one  foot.  In  the  other 
foot  they  hold  a  little  stone,  so  that  if  they  chance  to  go 
to  sleep  the  stone  will  fall  and  arouse  them.  No  serpent 
will  come  into  the  shade  of  an  ash  tree;  and  if  the  crea- 
ture be  encircled  partly  with  ash  leaves  and  partly  with 
fire,  he  will  flee  through  the  fire  rather  than  touch  the 
leaves.  The  young  ravens  live  on  dew  until  they  begin 
to  show  black  feathers.  Then  the  mother  bird  feeds 
them.  Toads  and  serpents  cannot  bear  the  fragrance  of 
the  grapevine  blossom,  and  when  the  vine  is  in  bloom, 
they  escape  from  the  vineyard.  These  are  some  of  the 
"  facts "  of  natural  history  as  believed  in  the  Middle 

33° 


Science  and  Medicine 

Ages.  Folk  were  taught  that  there  were  satyrs  with 
horns  and  the  feet  of  goats,  cyclops  with  one  eye  in  the 
middle  of  their  foreheads,  and  people  with  eyes  in  their 
shoulders  and  neither  nose  nor  head.  They  believed  that 
certain  men  had  made  pacts  with  Satan,  and  in  conse- 


THE    MAN-WOLF    AND    OTHERS 


quence  were  obliged  once  a  year  to  take  the  face  of  a 
dog,  a  wolf,  a  bull,  or  a  pig,  and  that  these  monsters 
searched  the  woods  to  find  children  to  devour.  But  of 
all  the  fancies  that  were  once  regarded  as  facts  of  natural 
history,  that  of  the  phoenix  was  dearest  to  the  good  peo- 
ple of  the  age.  There  was  only  one  phoenix  in  the  world 
at  a  time.  It  lived  from  three  to  five  hundred  years,  then, 

331 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

when  it  began  to  be  weary  and  feeble,  it  made  a  nest  of 
sweet  smelling  woods.  This  was  set  afire  by  the  rays  of 
the  sun ;  and  when  it  was  well  ablaze  the  bird  entered 
the  flames  and  was  burned  to  ashes.  Three  days  later,  a 
little  worm  was  found  in  the  ashes,  which  grew  and  put 
on  feathers  and  became  another  phoenix  to  take  the 
place  of  the  first.  Cassia,  it  was  said,  was  found  in  the 
nest  of  the  phoenix,  and  either  fell  to  the  ground  of  its 
own  accord  or  was  struck  down  by  leaden  arrows.  For 
some  reason,  people  were  not  so  willing  to  accept  this 
story  of  the  cassia  as  other  marvels,  and  some  ventured 
to  say  boldly  that  the  tale  was  invented  to  raise  the  price 
of  the  article.  About  the  mandrake,  however,  they  were 
ready  to  believe  anything,  no  matter  how  impossible. 
The  root  of  the  mandrake  is  often  forked,  and  has  a  rough 
resemblance  to  a  human  body.  That  was  enough  to 
serve  as  a  foundation  for  a  story  that  it  was  the  off- 
spring of  some  person  who  had  been  put  to  death  for 
murder.  It  shrieked  when  it  was  pulled,  said  the 
story;  and  to  pull  it  was  at  best  a  dangerous  business. 
He  who  set  about  it  must  wait  until  the  wind  blew 
from  a  favorable  quarter.  He  must  make  three  circles 
about  the  plant  with  a  sword;  but  he  must  not  ven- 
ture to  dig  until  after  the  sun  had  gone  down.  If  one 

332 


Science  and  Medicine 

obeyed   these   directions  carefully,   he   might   hope   to 
escape  harm. 

Various  methods  of  divination  were  resorted  to  in 
order  to  read  the  future  or  to  learn  whether  an  enter- 
prise would  be  likely  to  succeed.  One  way  was  to  hang 
a  ring  inside  a  pitcher  by  a  thread  and  read  the  fates  by 
the  number  of  times  that  it  struck  the  sides  of  the  pitcher. 
Sometimes  a  fire  was  built  of  certain  kinds  of  wood,  and 
it  was  believed  that  the  shape  and  movement  of  the 
flames  and  the  smoke  would  reveal  things  that  were 
about  to  be.  One  might  fast  and  pray  and  then  open  a 
Bible.  The  verse  upon  which  his  eye  first  lighted  would 
be  significant.  Sometimes  instead  of  the  Bible  a  copy  of 
Virgil  was  taken.  To  discover  hidden  treasure,  one  must 
use  the  hand  of  a  man  who  had  been  hanged.  Whether 
the  predictions  of  a  sorcerer  were  eventually  shown  to 
be  true  or  false,  the  people  believed  in  sorcery  just  the 
same ;  for  if  his  words  proved  false,  they  simply  declared 
that  he  was  not  a  true  sorcerer,  and  that  some  man  of 
greater  powers  would  have  succeeded.  Indeed,  so  far  as 
the  sorcerer  himself  was  concerned,  it  was  not  well  to 
succeed  too  often;  for  all  magic  was  supposed  to  be 
more  or  less  connected  with  the  Devil,  and  if  the  magi- 
cian was  too  successful,  whispers  would  go  abroad  among 

333 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

his  enemies  that  so  intimate  a  friend  of  Satan  ought  to 
be  burned  to  death  or  at  least  to  be  imprisoned.  It  was 
believed  that  at  stated  times  sorcerers  and  witches  met 
together  in  some  gloomy  and  unlawful  place  to  boast  of 
the  tricks  they  had  played  and  learn  of  one  another  and 
of  Satan  how  they  might  still  further  deceive  those 
who  consulted  them.  This  meeting  was  known  as  the 
"Witches'  Sabbath/' 

One  great  obstacle  in  the  way  of  real  progress  in  sci- 
ence was  the  general  belief  in  analogy.  A  magnet  will 
draw  steel;  therefore  it  was  concluded  that  it  would 
draw  pain  from  the  body.  The  "universal  solvent " 
which  the  philosophers  were  ever  hoping  to  discover 
would  separate  every  substance  into  its  elements ;  there- 
fore it  was  supposed  that  it  would  also  dissolve  disease 
and  do  away  with  it.  Another  difficulty  was  that  the 
causes  of  the  phenomena  of  nature  and  the  relation  of 
cause  to  effect  were  so  little  understood  that  with  most 
people  if  one  event  happened  after  another,  this  was  re- 
garded as  sufficient  proof  that  it  was  caused  by  that 
other.  No  matter  how  absurd  and  useless  a  medicine 
might  be,  if  a  sick  man  recovered  after  taking  a  dose 
of  it,  no  one  questioned  that  the  medicine  had  wrought 
the  cure. 

334 


Science  and  Medicine 

A  third  great  weakness  in  the  science  of  the  times 
was  that  instead  of  studying  nature  and  trying  to  explain 
what  they  saw,  the  philosophers  set  out  with  definite 
opinions  on  numerous  points  and  tried  to  make  nature 
and  their  own  observations  fit  the  theories.  The  alche- 
mists, as  has  been  said,  set  out  with  the  belief  that  all 
metals  were  made  of  sulphur  and  mercury,  and  they 
could  never  understand  why  the  metals  would  not  act 
like  sulphur  and  mercury.  Another  difficulty  was  that 
if  any  two  things  looked  alike,  the  philosophers  were 
certain  that  there  was  some  relation  between  them ;  but 
to  discover  what  it  was  they  used  their  imagination 
rather  than  their  observation.  For  instance,  crystal  looks 
like  ice;  therefore  they  decided  that  if  ice  could  be  kept 
for  many  years,  it  would  turn  into  crystal.  Pearls  have 
a  dewy  appearance  and  are  found  in  the  shells  of  oysters. 
That  was  proof  enough  that  pearls  came  from  dew ;  and 
the  philosophers  decided  that  in  the  nights  of  early  spring 
the  oyster  opened  its  shell  to  receive  the  drop  of  dew 
and  changed  it  into  a  pearl.  In  a  thunderstorm,  the  sky 
is  often  covered  with  heavy,  swiftly  changing  clouds; 
therefore  it  was  regarded  as  evident  that  thunder  is  the 
noise  produced  by  breaking  up  the  clouds.  This  same 
fashion  of  fancying  a  connection  between  any  two  things 

335 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

that  resembled  each  other  was  also  carried  into  medicine. 
The  wood  sorrel  has  a  heart-shaped  leaf;  therefore  it 
would  cure  any  disease  of  the  heart.  Liverwort,  or  he- 
patica,  has  a  three-lobed  leaf,  and  the  liver  has  three 
lobes ;  therefore  hepatica  was  of  course  beneficial  to  the 
liver.  Certain  ferns  have  seeds  so  tiny  that  they  can 
hardly  be  seen  by  the  naked  eye;  therefore  fern  seed 
had  the  power  of  making  one  invisible. 

Such  were  some  of  the  beliefs  and  superstitions  of  the 
people  of  the  Middle  Ages ;  but  the  folly  of  these  vain 
imaginings  was  realized  by  some.  One  man  who  wrote 
an  encyclopaedia  of  general  knowledge  exclaimed  against 
trying  to  read  the  future  by  noting  the  flight  of  a  flock 
of  crows,  and  said  that  he  did  not  think  it  lawful  to  be- 
lieve that  God  had  revealed  his  counsel  to  crows.  It  is 
no  longer  necessary,  as  was  the  case  in  the  seventh  cen- 
tury, for  a  worthy  bishop  to  beg  his  clergy  not  to  ob- 
serve Thursday,  the  day  of  Thor  or  Jupiter,  as  a  day  of 
rest,  not  to  fear  that  a  sneeze  proved  the  presence  of  evil 
spirits,  and  not  to  visit  sorcerers  or  makers  of  talismans. 
Nevertheless,  there  are  many  good  folk  even  now  who 
trust  to  absurd  treatments  of  disease,  who  believe  in  signs 
and  omens,  in  lucky  and  unlucky  days  and  numbers,  in 
the  misfortune  portended  by  the  breaking  of  a  looking- 

336 


Science  and  Medicine 

glass  or  by  the  howling  of  a  dog  under  the  window,  and 
in  a  thousand  other  superstitions;  and  even  to-day  the 
plain  common  sense  of  the  man  who  did  not  believe 
that  God  revealed  his  counsel  to  crows  would  often  be 
most  welcome. 


CHAPTER    XV 

ARCHITECTURE   AND   THE   ARTS 

DURING  the  Middle  Ages  a  vast  amount  of  building  was 
done.  There  were  not  only  the  castles  and  manor  houses 
and  town  halls  and  monasteries  which  have  already 
been  spoken  of,  but  there  were  also  many  magnificent 
churches  and  cathedrals.  Three  of  the  most  famous  of 
these  are  Saint  Sophia  in  Constantinople,  Saint  Mark  in 
Venice,  and  the  cathedral  at  Cologne.  Saint  Sophia  is 
an  immense  building  with  slender  towers  and  a  great 
flat  dome.  Within,  one  notices  first  of  all  rows  of  pillars 
separated  by  round  arches,  and  above  these  other  and 
still  other  rows,  making  long  galleries.  These  columns 
are  of  many  hues,  and  the  walls  are  faced  with  slabs  of 
marble  of  all  tints.  There  is  gilding  and  there  is  a  glow 
of  color  wherever  one  looks.  Above  it  all  is  the  bold 
sweep  of  the  great  dome,  encircled  by  fifty  windows. 
This  interior  may  not  be  dignified  or  harmonious,  but  it 
is  dazzling  in  its  luxuriance  and  sparkle  and  gorgeous- 
ness.  Saint  Sophia  was  built  in  the  sixth  century  by  the 
emperor  Justinian,  and  the  walls  were  then  decorated 

338 


SAN    SOPHIA,   CONSTANTINOPLE 

339 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

with  brilliant  mosaics  representing  scenes  in  his  life.  It 
was  a  Christian  church  until  1453,  when  the  Turks 
captured  the  city.  Since  then  it  has  been  used  as  a  Mo- 
hammedan mosque.  The  Koran,  the  sacred  book  of  the 
Mohammedans,  forbids  making  a  representation  of  any- 
thing having  life ;  and  therefore  the  Turks  covered  the 
mosaics  with  whitewash. 

The  style  of  architecture  in  which  Saint  Sophia  was 
built  takes  its  name  from  the  ancient  name  of  the  city 
and  is  called  Byzantine.  It  is  marked  by  domes  and 
cupolas,  and  especially  by  long  rows  of  round  arches 
resting  upon  columns,  and  other  arches  resting  upon 
them,  making  arcades,  or  corridors,  one  above  another. 
It  is  always  richly  ornamented  with  gold  and  glowing 
colors. 

One  glance  at  the  church  of  Saint  Mark  in  Venice 
would  show  that  this,  too,  is  of  Byzantine  architecture, 
for  it  has  so  many  domes  and  cupolas  and  arcades. 
During  the  century  and  a  half  that  the  Venetians  were 
building  it,  every  vessel  that  came  to  Venice  from  the 
East  was  required  to  bring  pillars  and  marbles  for  the 
church.  It  is  no  wonder  that  the  principal  front  has  five 
hundred  columns.  Over  the  centre  of  the  vestibule  are 
the  famous  "horses  of  Saint  Mark."  When  Constant!- 

340 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

nople  was  for  a  time  in  the  hands  of  the  crusaders,  they 
took  these  horses  from  the  hippodrome  and  brought 
them  to  Venice.  Napoleon  carried  them  to  Paris,  but 
in  1815  they  were  taken  back.  The  interior  of  Saint 
Mark,  like  that  of  all  Byzantine  buildings,  is  rich  and 
brilliant.  The  walls  are  lined  with  rare  marbles,  and  the 
floor  is  made  of  tessellated,  or  checkered,  mosaic  work. 

The  Moors  and  Saracens  built  many  mosques  and 
palaces.  The  most  renowned  ol  these  is  the  wonderful 
Alhambra  in  Spain,  which  was  erected  in  the  fourteenth 
and  fifteenth  centuries.  Longfellow  calls  it  an  enchanted 
palace.  Its  courts  and  pavilions  are  marvelously  beauti- 
ful. Some  of  its  ceilings  are  inlaid  with  silver  and  ivory 
and  mother  of  pearl  and  tortoise  shell.  Others,  as  well 
as  its  walls,  are  ornamented  with  most  graceful  stucco 
arabesques,  or  delicate  tracings  of  plants  and  vines,  half 
from  nature  and  half  conventional,  but  always  exquisite. 
Here  and  there  are  quotations  from  the  Koran ;  but  the 
Arabic  letters  seem  only  a.  part  of  the  ornamentation. 
The  stucco  was  formerly  brilliant  with  gold  and  color, 
and  some  portion  of  this  still  remains.  Everywhere  are 
columns  and  arches.  One  court  is  especially  famous  for 
its  beauty;  and  it  has  been  painted  and  described  so  many 
times  that  to  thousands  who  have  never  been  in  Spain 

341 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

it  is  almost  as  familiar  as  their  own  houses.  This  is  called 
the  Court  of  the  Lions,  because  within  it  is  a  fountain 
of  marble  and  alabaster  in  the  shape  of  twelve  lions  sur- 
rounding a  basin.  The  Koran,  as  has  been  said,  forbade 
Mohammedans  to  copy  animal  life.  Nevertheless,  here 
are  the  lions. 

After  the  ninth  century,  a  style  of  building  became 
common  which  has  received  the  name  of  Romanesque 
because  it  is  somewhat  like  the  old  Roman  fashion.  The 
roof  of  the  Romanesque  church  was  vaulted,  and  there- 
fore the  walls  had  to  be  made  thick  and  solid  to  support 
it.  The  number  of  windows  was  not  large,  and  what 
there  were  gave  little  light  because  of  the  thickness  of 
the  wall.  There  were  towers,  but  the  building  as  a  whole 
was  rather  low  and  wide,  and  even  the  towers  could 
not  give  it  grace.  The  church  at  Angouleme  is  Roman- 
esque. It  looks  strong  and  sturdy,  as  if  it  belonged 
where  it  stands  and  meant  to  stay  there,  but  it  is  not 
beautiful. 

After  the  Romanesque  style  came  the  Gothic  archi- 
tecture; and  this  is  generally  the  style  meant  when  peo- 
ple speak  of  the  architecture  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Its 
special  characteristic  is  a  pointed  rather  than  a  rounded 
arch.  Guesses  without  number  have  been  made  as  to 

342 


343 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

what  suggested  the  pointed  arch.  They  have  ranged  all 
the'way  from  Noah's  ark  to  the  lines  made  by  the  cross- 
ing of  the  branches  of  trees  planted  in  rows.  Gothic 
churches,  such  as  the  cathedral  at  Cologne,  have  pointed 
arches  at  doors  and  windows,  and  the  pillars  are  in  clusters 
instead  of  standing  separately,  as  in  the  Roman  and  Greek 
architecture.  The  roofs  are  vaulted.  Their  weight  tends 
to  push  the  walls  outward,  especially  as  these  are  high  and 
full  of  windows.  Instead,  however, 
of  thickening  the  walls,  as  in  the  Ro- 
manesque style,  the  architects  made 
outside  supports  called  flying  but- 
tresses. In  the  Gothic  churches  there 
are  many  slender  pinnacles,  and  there 
is  a  vast  amount  of  carving.  The  gen- 


eral effect  is  of  richness  and  splendor,  while  the  many 
perpendicular  lines  give  a  certain  lightness  and  grace 
which  no  other  style  of  architecture  can  produce.  The 
Gothic  church  is  usually  built  in  the  shape  of  a  cross, 
with  a  spire  or  tower  at  the  place  where  the  long  and 
the  short  arms  of  the  cross  intersect.  In  the  plan,  a  is 
the  nave,  b  the  transept,  and  c  the  choir.  Within  the 
choir  was  the  chancel.  The  tower  or  towers  rose  at  a. 
Here  was  hung  the  large  bell,  after  being  marked  with 

344 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

its  name  and  the  date,  and  after  being  christened  with 
water  and  anointed  with  oil.  Sometimes  in  places  near 
the  coast  a  church  tower  was  provided  with  a  cresset,  or 
iron  basket  in  which  a  signal  fire  might  be  kindled.  At 
first,  the  Gothic  architecture  was  used  for  churches  only ; 
but  later  castles,  bridges,  palaces,  and  gates  of  cities 
were  built  in  this  style. 

In  the  centuries  of  the  Middle  Ages,  the  Church  was 
the  great  power,  not  only  in  religious  matters,  but  even 
in  the  decorative  arts.  Mosaics,  painting,  carving,  em- 
broidery, colored  glass  were  all  of  use  in  beautifying  the 
churches;  and  this  fact  was  a  great  encouragement  to 
their  production.  Mosaics  were  made  by  the  Greeks  in 
very  early  times,  and  from  them  the  Italians  learned  the 
art.  The  "tessellated  floors"  of  which  we  read  in  de- 
scriptions of  churches  and  palaces  were  one  variety  of 
mosaic.  The  kind  most  used  in  Italy  was  made  by  tak- 
ing slabs  of  white  marble  as  a  foundation.  Grooves  were 
cut  into  it,  which  were  then  filled  with  little  cubes,  or 
"tessellae,"  of  colored  stone  to  form  patterns.  Of  course 
in  the  Byzantine  mosaic  work  one  would  expect  much 
brilliancy  and  color.  This  was  obtained  by  using  bits  of 
glass  instead  of  stone.  A  sheet  of  gold  leaf  was  laid  be- 
tween two  sheets  of  glass  and  burned  in  a  kiln.  It  was 

345 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

then  broken  into  bits,  which  served  as  a  background  for 
the  figures  or  designs.  These  designs  were  made  of  dif- 
ferently colored  glass  or  marble.  The  tiny  pieces  were 
firmly  fixed  in  cement,  and  most  elaborate  pictures  were 
the  result.  One  of  the  most  famous  is  called  "  Pliny's 
Doves/'  It  represents  four  doves  sitting  on  a  metal  basin, 
one  of  them  stooping  to  drink.  When  altars  and  walls 
and  pulpits  gleamed  and  glittered  with  mosaic  work  in 
the  dim  light  of  some  vast  cathedral,  the  effect  was  far 
more  rich  than  that  produced  by  any  other  species  of 
ornament. 

Instead  of  covering  church  walls  with  mosaic,  fresco 
was  sometimes  used,  that  is,  painting  in  water  color  on 
damp  plaster.  This  lasted  well,  because  the  colors  sank 
into  the  plaster;  but  the  drawing  was  stiff  and  the  faces 
had  little  expression,  until  the  coming  of  an  artist  named 
Cimabue,  in  the  thirteenth  century.  The  faces  that  he 
drew  looked  like  those  of  real  people  with  real  thoughts  and 
feelings.  His  draperies,  too,  were  not  prim  and  wooden, 
but  hung  as  if  they  had  been  painted  from  real  folds  of 
cloth.  It  is  said  that  when  his  famous  "Madonna"  was 
to  be  carried  to  the  Church  of  Santa  Maria  Novella,  the 
people  formed  in  procession  to  do  it  honor,  and  shouted 
joyfully  when  the  artist  appeared  among  them.  Cimabue 

346 


THE  ALHAMBRA:   THE  COURT  OF  LIONS 


347 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

one  day  noticed  a  shepherd  boy  drawing  on  a  rock  a 
picture  of  his  sheep.  It  was  so  well  done  that  the  artist 
took  the  boy  under  his  protection  and  taught  him.  This 
boy  became  the  famous  Giotto.  The  faces  that  he  painted 
look  as  "real  "  as  those  of  Cimabue ;  and  he  even  painted 
portraits  of  living  people  and  ventured  to  make  them 
look  like  the  people.  It  was  Giotto  who  painted  the  por- 
trait of  Dante  which  has  been  handed  down  to  us.  The 
backgrounds,  however,  of  Giotto's  work,  like  those  of 
other  artists  of  the  time,  were  not  like  nature.  If  there 
was  a  landscape,  the  trees  were  thin  and  rigid  and  not 
in  the  least  like  real,  growing  trees.  Frequently  the 
background  was  of  gold.  Indeed,  to  the  artists  of  the 
time  there  could  hardly  be  too  much  gold  in  a  picture. 
To-day  if  an  artist  introduces  a  crown  or  a  pair  of  gilded 
spurs,  for  instance,  he  tries  to  produce  the  effect  of  gold 
by  the  skillful  use  of  lights  and  shadows;  but  the  artist 
of  mediaeval  times  simply  embossed  real  gold  on  the 
picture.  This  would  hardly  be  called  artistic,  but  it 
made  a  design  brilliant  and  rich,  a  splendid  piece  of 
decoration. 

%/  Another  famous  painter  was  the  monk  Fra  Angelico. 
He  did  not  know  that  he  was  an  artist,  but  in  his  leisure 
moments  he  covered  some  blank  pages  of  a  manuscript 

348 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

with  such  dainty  little  miniatures  that  his  brother  monks 
were  delighted.  "Paint  a  picture/'  they  urged,  and  he 
painted.  By  and  by  the  Pope  heard  what  he  was  doing, 
and  sent  for  him  to  paint  one  of  the  chapels  of  the  Vati- 
can. It  was  so  well  done  that  the  Pope  wished  to  make 
him  an  archbishop  in  reward ;  but  the  monk  refused  the 
honor.  He  felt  that  God  had  given  him  a  gift  which  it 
would  be  wrong  to  neglect  for  the  sake  of  a  high  posi- 
tion, and  he  went  back  to  his  little  cell  to  paint.  He 
painted  many  diptychs  and  triptychs,  or  two-fold  and 
three-fold  tablets.  These  were  often  used  as  orna- 
ments for  the  altar.  The  triptych  especially  was  quite 
elaborate.  It  was  a  wooden  panel  often  carved  quaintly 
in  Gothic  designs,  and  shut  in  by  two  little  doors.  On 
the  outside  of  the  doors  the  artist  painted  pictures,  fre- 
quently the  portraits  of  the  donor  and  his  wife.  On  the 
inside  there  were  pictures  of  saints  or  scenes  from  the 
Bible.  The  background  of  the  figures  is  usually  gold, 
still  bright  and  gleaming  after  all  the  hundreds  of  years. 
Hawthorne  says  that  if  Fra  Angelico's  imagination  had 
not  been  pure  and  holy,  he  could  never  have  painted 
such  saints,  and  that  he  must  have  said  a  prayer  between 
every  two  touches  of  his  brush. 

The  painting  that  was  done  on  manuscripts  was  called 

349 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

illuminating.  At  the  beginning  of  the  Middle  Ages  the 
parchment  was  sometimes  dyed  purple,  and  the  whole 
book  written  in  letters  of  gold  or  silver  almost  as  regu- 
lar as  print.  Of  course  such  books  as  these  were  enor- 
mously expensive.  In  the  thirteenth  century,  a  finely 
written  Bible  was  sold  for  enough  to  pay  a  workman's 
wages  for  twenty-six  years.  Of  course  not  many  books 
were  as  expensive  as  this,  but  they  were  all  very  costly. 
Most  volumes  were  decorated,  even  those  that  cost  no 
more  than  a  house  or  two.  The  margin  of  the  frontis- 
piece was  generally  painted,  and  there  were  often  borders 
to  the  pages  and  most  elaborate  initials,  sometimes  en- 
twined with  flowers  and  vines  and  sometimes  showing 
pictures  of  saints  or  even  of  whole  Bible  scenes.  No  one 
thought  of  trying  to  find  out  how  people  dressed  in  Bible 
times,  and  therefore  the  illuminators  simply  copied  the 
s->>  dress  of  their  own  day.  Artistically,  this  was  not  very 
(  correct;  but  it  is  a  great  help  in  learning  about  the  cos- 
tumes of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  reds  and  blues  and 
greens  in  these  illuminations  are  as  fresh  and  bright  as 
ever,  and  the  gold  looks  as  if  it  had  been  put  on  only  an 
hour  ago.  Much  expense  went  into  the  binding.  The 
covers  were  sometimes  of  wood  and  sometimes  of 
leather.  They  were  ornamented  with  gold  and  silver 

350 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

filigree  work  at  the  corners,  or  with  heavy  knobs  of  the 
precious  metals.  Often  they  were  set  with  jewels.  Some- 
times the  covers  were  of  ivory,  most  delicately  carved. 
If  a  man  was  fortunate  enough  to  own  a  book,  he  was 
exceedingly  careful  to  whom  he  gave  the  privilege  of 
opening  its  clasps.  As  to  lending  it,  that  was  not  done 
as  a  matter  of  friendship  by  any  means.  The  borrower 
must  give  ample  security  that  he  would  return  it  unin- 
jured. Even  kings  were  not  excepted.  When  Louis  XI, 
king  of  France,  wished  to  borrow  of  the  faculty  of 
medicine  of  the  university  of  Paris  the  works  of  a  cer- 
tain Arabian  physician,  he  was  not  only  obliged  to  give 
valuable  security,  but  he  had  to  obtain  a  wealthy  en- 
dorser just  as  if  he  were  an  ordinary  man,  and  not  the 
ruler  of  the  land. 

As  the  style  of  church  building  changed,  the  fashion  of 
decorating  churches  changed  also.  The  Gothic  churches 
had  many  windows  and  few  flat  surfaces,  and  so  they 
afforded  little  space  for  painting  on  the  walls.  But  the 
windows  were  fine  and  lofty ;  and  here  was  the  best  op- 
portunity in  the  world  for  colored  glass.  Throughout 
the  Middle  Ages,  the  common  way  of  making  these 
windows  was  to  prepare  glass  of  the  various  colors 
needed,  and  then  cut  it  into  the  shape  of  the  object.  If 

351 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

a  figure  wore  a  red  cloak,  for  instance,  it  was  first 
sketched,  then  the  red  glass  was  cut  into  the  shape  of 
the  cloak  as  it  appeared  in  the  picture,  and  this  was 
fastened  to  the  other  pieces  by  a  narrow  strip  of  lead, 
so  that  the  lead  traced  all  the  outlines  of  the  picture.  The 
shading  and  those  parts  of  the  design  which  were  too 
small  to  be  shown  by  separate  bits  of  glass  were  painted 
with  dark  brown.  The  colors  are  sometimes  brilliant 
and  glowing,  sometimes  rich  and  dark. 

Enamel  was  much  used,  with  its  soft  gleam  rather 
than  with  the  flashing,  glowing  beauty  of  stained  glass. 
To  represent  a  figure  in  enamel  work,  the  artist  cut 
down  into  a  plate  of  copper,  leaving  the  outline  of  the 
figure  of  the  full  depth.  Then  into  the  shallow  depres- 
sions of  the  figure  he  put  a  glassy  substance  in  whatever 
color  was  needed  and  melted  it  in  a  furnace  until  it 
flowed  and  filled  the  whole  depression.  Then  he  polished 
the  plate,  and  it  was  done.  Later,  artists  used  to  make 
the  whole  figure  in  copper,  finishing  it  with  delicate 
lines  of  engraving,  and  using  enamel  for  the  background. 
Hanging  lamps,  altars,  chalices,  crosses,  bells,  and  mon- 
strances, and  many  articles  of  jewelry,  such  as  clasps, 
chains,  necklaces  and  bracelets  were  adorned  with 
enamel. 

352 


vat 


COLOGNE    CATHEDRAL 


353 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

A  vast  amount  of  sculpture  was  used  in  the  churches. 
In  the  Gothic  architecture,  especially  in  France,  statues 
were  everywhere.  Including  has  reliefs  and  scenes  por- 
trayed on  the  windows,  the  cathedral  at  Chartres  is  said 
to  contain  ten  thousand  figures.  Besides  the  statues  which 
were  a  part  of  the  church  and  were  used  expressly  to 
adorn  it,  there  were  recumbent  memorial  statues  for 
tombs,  which  were  at  first  stiff  and  unreal,  but  which 
came  to  represent  with  considerable  truth  the  persons  in 
whose  honor  they  were  made.  In  some  places  it  was  the 
custom  to  model  statues  in  wood  or  wax  as  true  to  the 
original  as  possible  and  lay  them  upon  the  biers  of 
wealthy  people  at  their  funerals.  Little  statuettes  were 
often  made  in  wood  or  ivory  for  ornaments.  Reli- 
quaries were  frequently  made  in  the  shape  of  some  saint 
with  a  tiny  tabernacle  to  hold  a  relic.  The  whole  tusk 
of  the  elephant  was  sometimes  used  in  a  carving,  and 
the  carvers  made  their  figures  lean  back  in  a  peculiar 
fashion  to  accommodate  the  curve  of  the  tusk.  People 
were  very  fond  of  bas  reliefs.  The  tympanum,  that  is, 
the  space  between  the  top  of  the  door  and  the  angle  of 
the  roof,  was  often  carved  in  relief  to  represent  a  whole 
story.  On  the  capitals,  or  heads  of  the  columns,  and  on 
the  friezes  men  and  animals  were  sculptured.  Diptychs 

354 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

and  triptychs  were  made  of  ivory  with  minute  carvings 
representing  scenes  in  the  life  of  Christ  or  of  the  Evan- 
gelists. This  carving  was  sometimes  picked  out  with 
color  or  with  gilding. 

In  point  of  naturalness  there  was  a  vast  difference  be- 
tween the  Romanesque  art  and  the  Gothic.  The  Roman- 
esque made  a  magnificent  decoration;  but  it  paid  little 
attention  to  nature.  The  figures  were  wooden  and  un- 
natural, and  the  draperies  stiff  and  rigid.  Gothic  art 
studied  nature.  The  Gothic  artists  tried  to  make  figures 
look  like  real  persons,  and  to  make  the  carved  draperies 
hang  as  real  draperies  of  cloth  would  hang.  When  they 
carved  flowers  and  foliage,  they  studied  those  that  were 
native  to  the  place  where  the  carving  was  to  be  and 
did  their  best  to  imitate  them.  In  the  Gothic  cathedrals, 
this  carving  and  painting  was  not  wholly  for  beauty  by 
any  means.  The  work  was  done  according  to  the  orders 
of  the  clergy,  and  they  never  forgot  that  the  church  was 
the  school  of  the  common  folk.  That  is  why  not  only 
animals  and  plants,  but  scenes  from  the  Bible  and  legends 
of  saints  were  shown.  There  were  carvings  to  represent 
the  seasons,  the  arts  and  crafts,  even  stories  introducing 
the  virtues  and  vices  in  the  form  of  persons.  In  the  ear- 
lier times,  in  much  of  the  Romanesque  art,  dragons  and 

355 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

griffins  and  monsters  of  all  sorts  appeared ;  but  now  these 
were  seen  only  as  gargoyles,  that  is,  at  the  end  of  spouts 
which  carried  away  water  from  the  roof  gutters. 

The  amount  of  gold  and  silver  and  jewels  used  in  the 
churches  was  enormous.  Not  only  the  chalices  and 
crosses  and  other  furnishings  of  the  altars  were  of  gold, 
but  often  the  altars  themselves.  In  the  church  built  in 
Constantinople  by  Constantine  in  the  fourth  century, 
there  were  numerous  lifesize  figures  of  silver,  each  weigh- 
ing from  ninety  to  one  hundred  and  ten  pounds.  A 
canopy  made  of  polished  silver  is  said  to  have  weighed 
two  thousand  pounds.  In  making  the  porphyry  font, 
three  thousand  pounds  of  silver  were  used,  and  there  were 
also  columns  of  gold  and  an  image  of  a  lamb  of  solid 
gold.  Figures  of  the  saints  often  had  precious  stones  for 
eyes.  This  same  beautiful  work  was  carried  into  cups 
and  spoons  and  salt-cellars  for  royal  households,  and  into 
jewelry  for  those  who  could  afford  to  possess  it.  Most 
exquisite  necklaces,  clasps,  bracelets,  and  chatelaines  were 
made  and  loaded  with  rubies  and  emeralds  and  pearls. 
The  English  were  famed  for  their  remarkable  gold  and 
enamel  work.  An  especially  well  known  bit  of  it  is  the 
"jewel"  of  Alfred  the  Great,  which  he  lost  in  the  ninth 
century  and  which  was  found  again  in  the  seventeenth. 

356 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

In  the  eighth  century  there  was  in  France  a  famous  Saint 
Eloy,  a  monk,  who  produced  such  wonderful  articles  in 
gold  and  silver  that  whole  monasteries  became  his  en- 
thusiastic followers.  To  own  a  piece 
of  his  work  was  the  glory  of  a  church. 
A  great  amount  of  embroidery  was 
used  in  the  churches  for  curtains,  altar 
cloths,  and  vestments.  The  English 
were  especially  famed  for  this  work 
also.  They  made  most  handsome  vest- 
ments, stiff  with  embroidery  and  flash- 
ing with  gold  and  jewels.  In  Lin- 
coln Cathedral  there  were  more  than 
six  hundred  of  such  vestments,  em- 
broidered on  silk  or  velvet  or  rare 
Eastern  materials.  In  the  thirteenth 
century,  Henry  III  presented  one  of 
his  bishops  with  a  cope  which  was  valued  at  nearly 
£20,  a  sum  estimated  to  be  worth  about  ^300  to-day. 
Besides  this  rich  embroidery,  there  was  much  tapestry. 
Tapestry  is  made  in  a  loom,  but  it  is  not  woven  with 
a  shuttle.  The  threads  of  the  warp  are  fastened  into 
place  as  in  ordinary  weaving;  but  instead  of  filling  in 
the  woof  by  throwing  a  shuttle  across  them,  the  tapestry 

357 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

maker  uses  a  needle  and  works  in  his  designs  with 
threads  of  different  colors.  Tapestry  was  used  for  cur- 
tains, canopies,  table-covers,  hangings  of  walls,  bench- 
covers,  and  often  for  street  decorations  when  important 
processions  were  to  pass.  The  most  famous  piece  of 
"tapestry/*  the  Bayeux  Tapestry,  is  in  reality  not  tap- 
estry at  all,  but  embroidery.  It  is  worked  with  wool 
upon  a  strip  of  brown  linen  nineteen  inches  wide  and 
nearly  two  hundred  and  twelve  feet  long.  It  tells  the 
story  of  the  coming  of  William  the  Conqueror  to  Eng- 
land, and  has  pictures  of  his  going  on  board  ship,  of  his 
landing,  of  battles,  and  other  scenes  in  his  conquest,  all 
worked  with  the  needle.  The  pictures  are  rude,  but  they 
are  clear,  and  they  tell  the  story.  To  embroider  well 
was  looked  upon  as  a  great  accomplishment  in  the  time 
of  William,  quite  proper  for  the  fingers  of  a  queen, 
and  it  is  possible  that  William's  wife,  Matilda,  and  the 
maidens  of  her  household  worked  together  on  this  strip 
of  cloth. 

In  the  Middle  Ages,  as  has  been  said  before,  there 
were  many  kinds  of  musical  instruments,  flutes,  harps, 
drums,  trumpets,  pipes,  and  many  others;  but  the  one 
best  suited  to  church  music  was  the  organ.  An  organ 
was  presented  to  Charlemagne  by  Constantine,  emperor 

358 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

of  the  East,  which  was  "small  but  mighty,"  for,  accord- 
ing to  the  stories,  it  imitated  the  "  roaring  of  the  thun- 
der, the  accents  of  the  lyre,  and  the  clang  of  cymbals." 
For  some  time  many  bishops  and  priests  objected  to  the 
thunderous  rambling;  but  organs  made  their  way  and 


AN    ORGAN 


became  big  and  magnificent.  Some  had  pipes  of  silver 
and  others  of  gold.  The  organists  certainly  needed  to  be 
trained  athletes,  for  the  key  plates  were  five  or  six  inches 
wide,  and  the  player  had  to  wear  gloves  heavily  padded 
and  strike  the  keys  with  the  full  force  of  his  fists. 

From  the  splendor  of  the  churches  the  people  went 
out  into  the  plain,  simple  life  of  every  day.  It  is  no  won- 

359 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

der  that  whenever  there  was  anything  of  the  nature  of  a 
pageant,  they  enjoyed  it  with  all  their  might.  Most  of 
these  pageants  took  place  to  celebrate  some  royal  mar- 
riage or  the  coronation  of  a  sovereign.  One  of  the  most 
famous  occurred  in  France  toward  the  end  of  the  four- 
teenth century,  when  Isabella  of  Bavaria  entered  Paris  to 
become  the  queen  of  the  French.  She  left  the  palace  of 
Saint  Denis  in  the  morning.  She  was  in  a  richly  orna- 
mented litter  and  was  attended  by  her  nobles  and  ladies 
in  waiting.  On  either  side  of  the  way  stood  a  body  of 
some  twelve  hundred  citizens  of  Paris,  all  on  horseback 
and  wearing  handsome  uniforms  of  crimson  and  green. 
A  company  of  officers  did  their  best  to  clear  the  way  for 
the  royal  party,  but  "it  seemed  as  if  all  the  world  had 
come  thither,"  an  old  chronicler  says. 

At  the  first  gate  of  Saint  Denis  the  pageants  began. 
There  was  a  representation  of  a  starry  sky,  and  in  this 
sky  were  children  dressed  as  angels,  who  sang  as  the 
queen  approached.  This  firmament  must  have  been  a 
little  confusing,  for  in  one  part  was  an  image  of  the 
Virgin  Mary  with  the  Holy  Child  in  her  arms  playing 
with  a  windmill  made  of  a  large  walnut,  and  in  another 
were  the  arms  of  France  and  Bavaria,  somewhat  entan- 
gled in  the  rays  of  an  exceedingly  brilliant  sun. 

360 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

The  next  sight  was  a  fountain  which  ran  wine  instead 
of  water.  It  was  decorated  with  fine  blue  cloth  sprinkled 
with  fleurs-de-lys.  Handsomely  dressed  young  girls  stood 
around  the  fountain,  singing  most  melodiously  and  of- 
fering wine  in  golden  cups  to  all  who  would  have 
it.  Just  beyond  the  fountain,  a  high  stage  had  been 
built,  and  on  this  was  represented  a  battle  with  the 
Saracens. 

Now  the  queen  had  come  to  the  second  gate,  and  here 
was  another  representation  of  the  firmament;  but  this 
time  two  angels  descended  from  it  and,  singing  sweetly, 
they  gently  placed  upon  her  head  a  crown  of  gold  rich 
with  precious  stones.  A  second  scaffold  was  curtained 
and  draped  with  tapestry,  and  on  it  were  men  playing 
on  organs.  The  whole  street  was  covered  with  a  canopy 
of  handsome  camlet  and  silk.  At  Notre  Dame  Bridge 
there  was  a  canopy  of  crimson  and  green  made  bright 
with  stars.  The  street  leading  to  the  church  was  hung 
with  tapestry  to  the  very  door.  The  procession  had 
moved  so  slowly  that  it  was  now  late  in  the  evening  ; 
but  the  show  was  not  over,  for  from  the  highest  tower 
of  Notre  Dame  a  rope  had  been  let  down,  and  by  this 
rope  a  man  descended,  bearing  two  lighted  torches  and 
playing  various  tricks  on  his  way. 

361 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

At  the  church  door  the  Bishop  of  Paris  and  his  clergy 
met  the  queen  and  led  her  through  the  nave  and  the 
choir  to  the  altar.  There  she  knelt  and  prayed,  and  then 
she  lifted  the  crown  from  her  head  and  gave  it  together 
with  four  cloths  of  gold  to  the  Church.  Another  and 
richer  crown  was  at  once  placed  upon  her  head;  then 
with  an  escort  bearing  five  hundred  lighted  tapers  she 
was  carried  back  to  her  palace. 

This  was  on  Sunday.  Monday  the  queen  was  solemnly 
anointed  with  the  sacred  oil.  The  king  gave  a  grand 
banquet.  He  had  provided  several  interesting  devices,  or 
dumb  shows,  but  the  hall  was  so  crowded  that  hardly 
any  one  could  see  them,  or  even  get  anything  to  eat,  for 
that  matter,  though  a  great  plenty  had  been  supplied. 
Tuesday  there  was  a  tournament  wherein  thirty  knights, 
including  the  king,  contended  from  three  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon  until  night.  Then  came  another  splendid 
banquet,  followed  by  dancing  which  lasted  till  sunrise. 
Wednesday  and  Thursday  there  were  tilting  and  feasting, 
and  Friday  the  guests  made  their  farewells  and  went  to 
their  homes. 

In  all  such  pageants  the  people  saw  nothing  irrever- 
ent in  mingling  religion  and  amusement.  When  the 
little  nine-year  old  English  king,  Henry  VI,  had  been 

362 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

successful,  by  means  of  his  generals,  in  his  battles  with 
Joan  of  Arc,  his  guardians  decided  that  he  should  be 
crowned  in  Paris  as  king  of  the  French ;  and  at  this  cele- 
bration there  was  a  hunting  scene  wherein  a  well-trained 
deer  took  refuge  under  the  king's  horse;  there  was  a 
presentation  of  three  large  crimson  hearts  to  indicate 
the  love  borne  the  king  by  his  people;  there  was  a  big 
fountain  of  hippocras,  a  sort  of  spiced  wine,  wherein 
three  mermaids  were  swimming;  and  there  were  also 
mystery  plays  acted  in  dumb  show.  At  the  coronation 
feast  there  were  pageants  of  course.  One  was  a  lady  with 
a  peacock,  another  a  lady  with  a  swan,  and  a  third  was 
the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  Christ  Child. 

When  the  little  royal  boy  returned  to  England,  he 
was  received  by  gentlemen  of  Kent  in  red  hoods,  by 
mayors  and  corporations,  by  citizens  in  white  with  the 
insignia  of  their  trade  embroidered  on  their  sleeves,  and 
by  aldermen  in  scarlet.  At  London  Bridge  a  mighty 
giant  with  a  drawn  sword  stood  in  the  way;  but  he 
proved  to  be  a  kindly  giant,  and  he  made  a  speech  de- 
claring that  he  was  ready  to  defy  all  the  little  king's 
enemies.  Next  followed  a  moral  lecture  in  costume; 
for  from  a  tower  richly  draped  with  silk  there  came 
forth  three  ladies  dressed  in  white  and  gold  and  wear- 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

ing  coronets.  They  said  in  rhyme  that  they  were  Na- 
ture, Grace,  and  Fortune,  and  that  they  had  come  to 
bestow  upon  him  the  best  of  gifts.  Then  appeared  on 
the  right  seven  young  girls  in  white  with  blue  baldrics, 
and  on  the  left  seven  whose  dresses  were  powdered  with 
stars  of  gold.  The  first  seven  declared  that  they  bestowed 
upon  him  sapience,  intelligence,  good  counsel,  strength, 
cunning,  pity,  and  the  fear  of  God.  The  others  repeated 
the  following  verses:  — 

God  thee  endowe  with  crowne  of  glorie ; 
And  with  the  sceptre  of  cleneness  and  pitie : 
And  with  a  swearde  of  might  and  victorie ; 
And  with  a  mantell  of  prudence  clad  thou  bee : 
A  shield  of  faith,  for  to  defende  thee. 
An  helme  of  health,  wrought  to  thyne  encrease, 
Girte  with  a  girdell,  of  love  and  parfite  peace. 

After  this  they  sang  a  roundelay,  or  "  an  heavenly  melodic 
and  song/' 

The  next  sight  was  a  sort  of  tabernacle  wherein  sat 
Dame  Sapience  with  her  pupils — the  trivium  and  the 
quadrivium — Grammar,  Logic,  Rhetoric,  Music,  Arith- 
metic, Geometry,  and  Astronomy.  The  little  boy  must 
have  been  tired  when  he  reached  "Paradise."  This  was 
a  place  made  beautiful  with  green  trees  bearing  oranges, 

364 


Architecture  and  the  Arts 

almonds,  olives,  pomegranates,  dates,  quinces,  and 
peaches ;  and  the  small  Henry  could  hardly  have  helped 
wishing  that  he  was  not  a  king,  but  just  an  everyday 
boy  and  could  jump  down  and  lie  under  the  trees  and 
pick  the  fruit  which  had  been  so  skillfully  fastened  upon 
the  branches.  But  there  is  no  rest  for  kings,  and  he  had 
to  sit  still  and  look  interested  while  two  elderly  men 
preached  a  sermon  to  him  in  verse.  At  last  the  poor 
child  reached  his  palace;  and  perhaps  in  his  dreams  he 
had  the  pleasure  of  forgetting  that  he  was  a  sovereign. 

Such  were  the  people  and  the  customs  in  the  days 
when  knights  were  bold.  It  was  a  time  of  contradictions, 
an  extraordinary  commingling  of  ignorance  with  an  in- 
tense desire  to  learn,  of  courtesy  and  gentleness  with 
utter  recklessness  of  human  life  and  suffering;  of  mag- 
nificence of  dress  and  luxuriance  of  surroundings  with 
revolting  filth  and  wearisome  discomfort;  of  keenness 
in  argument  and  blindness  in  doing  justice,  of  readiness 
to  sin  with  equal  readiness  to  endure  extreme  penance. 
The  people  of  the  Middle  Ages  studied  by  futile 
methods,  their  astronomy  was  founded  upon  a  mistake, 
their  chemistry  upon  a  poetical  fancy.  Nevertheless, 
something  closely  akin  to  the  change  of  one  metal  into 
another  has  already  become  an  everyday  matter  in  our 


When  Knights  were  Bold 

laboratories,  and  the  dream  of  the  alchemists  may  yet 
prove  true  in  essence. 

The  Middle  Ages  lay  between  the  civilization  of  the 
ancients  and  that  of  the  printing  press.  It  was  a  time  of 
rapid  changes,  of  swift  and  mighty  transitions.  Human 
life  was  insecure,  the  laws  and  their  execution  were  often 
bitterly  unjust;  and  yet  there  must  have  been  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  people  who  lived  their  lives  quietly  and 
contentedly,  perhaps  thinking  with  pity  of  those  who 
dwelt  in  the  land  before  them  and  with  sympathy  rather 
than  envy  of  the  condition  of  those  who  would  follow 
them.  "When  one  is  contented,  there  is  no  more  to  be 
desired ;  and  when  there  is  no  more  to  be  desired,  there 
is  an  end  of  it,"  declares  the  wisdom  of  Don  Quixote. 
Possibly  the  good  folk  of  the  Middle  Ages  have  after  all 
no  special  need  of  our  compassion. 


Index 


INDEX 


Abacus,  284. 

Abbpj,  head  of  Convent  of  Cluny,  157, 169; 
military  power  of,  172. 

"Abjuring  the  realm,"  74. 

"Above  the  salt,"  101. 

Accolade,  13,  16. 

Adam,  in  the  mystery  plays,  239. 

Aden,  262. 

Adriatic  Sea,  262. 

"Adventurers,"  266. 

JEsop,  copied  in  schools,  284. 

Africa,  pirates  of,  152;  rounded  by  the  Por- 
tuguese, 264;  supposed  marvels  of,  328. 

Agricultural  implements,  clumsiness  of,  117. 

"Aid,"  given  by  vassals,  104. 

Ailettes,  21. 

Albigenses,  191. 

Alchemists,  reported  marvels  of,  322-323; 
false  notions  of,  324;  three  aims  of,  325- 
326;  discoveries  of,  326-327;  belief  of, 
concerning  metals,  335. 

Alcuin,  teacher  of  Charlemagne,  280-281. 

Alexander  the  Great,  romances  of,  298. 

Alexandria,  262. 

Alfred  the  Great,  as  a  minstrel,  95;  encour- 
ages learning,  281-282;  "jewel"  of,  356. 

Alhambra,  341-342. 

Almoner,  of  a  convent,  170. 

Amalfi,  149. 

America,  supposed  home  of  the  "elixir  of 
life,"  325. 

American  Flag,  The,  23. 

Ampulla,  128. 

Amusements,  of  London,  228-23 1 ;  at  fairs, 
259-260. 

Analogy,  belief  in,  prevents  progress,  334. 

Anchoress,  181;  life  of,  182-183. 

Anchorite,  181-182. 

Ancren  Riwle,  The,  extract  from,  299. 

Angouleme,  church  at,  342. 

Anne  Boleyn,  poor  appetite  of,  91-92. 

Anthony,  Saint,  school  of,  226. 

"Anthony's  pigs,"  226. 

Antioch,  262. 

Apprenticeship,  212,  213. 


Arabian  Nights,  The,  137. 

Arabic,  Greek  translated  into,  312. 

Arabic  numerals,  introduced,  282,  286. 

Arabs,  horses  of,  26. 

Aries,  315. 

Arithmetic,  as  taught  in  schools,  284. 

Arminius,  200. 

Armor,  18-25;  °f  horses,  26. 

"Armorial  bearings,"  24-25;  at  tourna- 
ments, 43;  on  dress,  80. 

Arms  (coats  of  arms),  24. 

Arms  and  armor,  18-27. 

"  A  Roland  for  an  Oliver,"  293. 

Arras,  tapestry  woven  in,  86. 

Art,  345-355;  difference  between  Roman- 
esque and  Gothic,  355-356;  influence  of 

A  CuhurclL?n>  34£'  35S'  3J6-r 

Arthur,  King,  the  sword  of,  25;  and  the 

Round  Table,  294-296;  sung  by  German 

poets,  308. 

Asia,  commerce  of,  134,  261. 
Asser,  priest  of  King  Alfred,  281. 
Astrologer,  makes  horoscopes,  gives  advice, 

3i5-3i6. 
Astrology,  in  medicine,  316-317;  believed 

in  by  alchemists,  324. 
Astronomy,  taught  to  girls,  98;  importance 

of,  284-285;  founded  upon  a  mistake, 

313-314,  328. 
Attila,  291. 

Augustine,  Saint,  193;  preaches  to  the  Eng- 
lish, 195-197,  281. 
Ave  Maria,  to  be  said  three  times  a  day,  314. 

Babee,  4. 

"Babees*  book,  4. 

Babieca,  horse  of  the  Cid,  292. 

Bacchus,  214. 

Backgammon,  4,  9,  98,  101. 

Bacon,  Roger,  in  charms  and  talismans, 
320;  brazen  head  made  by,  323-324;  belief 
in  the  "universal  solvent,"  325;  discovers 
gunpowder,  predictions  of,  327-328. 

Bseda  (Bede),  the  first  English  scholar,  278; 
writings  of,  used  as  text-books,  282. 


369 


Index 


Bagpipe,  played  at  feast,  93;  played  on  pil- 
grimage, 126. 

Bailiff,  of  a  manor,  1 16. 

Baldric,  23. 

Baldur,  temple  of,  296. 

"Balista,"65,  67,  68. 

"Balks,"  in. 

Baltic  Sea,  freed  from  pirates,  268-269; 
closed  to  the  English,  271. 

Banneret,  12. 

Baptism,  fees  paid  at,  112;  heathen  thought 
to  be  coming  for,  199;  forced,  200-201, 
205. 

Barbers,  as  surgeons,  216-217. 

Barber's  pole,  significance  of,  216,  318. 

Baron,  12. 

"Baron  and  defender  of  the  Holy  Sepul- 
chre," title  of  Godfrey  of  Bouillon,  142. 

Bartholomew,  Saint,  fair  of,  260. 

Bas  relief,  in  churches,  354-355. 

Battering  ram,  65. 

Battle,  knight  attended  by  squire  in,  n; 
knighting  at  time  of,  13-14. 

Battle-axe,  20. 

Battledore  and  shuttlecock,  98. 

Battle-hammer,  carried  by  priests,  20-21. 

Battlements,  56. 

Bavaria,  Isabella  of,  enters  Paris,  360. 

Bayeux  Tapestry,  358. 

Bear-baiting,  230. 

Bears,  trained,  brought  to  feasts,  95. 

"Beast  epic,"  299. 

Beatrice,  loved  by  Dante,  309. 

Beaucaire,  fair  at,  260. 

Bede,  the  Venerable,  278;  writings  of,  312. 
S^  Baeda. 

Bedrooms  in  castles,  76-78. 

Begging  orders,  189. 

Belgium,  tapestry  woven  in,  86. 

Benedict  of  Nursia,  Saint,  founds  the  Bene- 
dictines, 155;  relaxation  of  his  rule,  156. 

"Benefit  of  clergy,"  50. 

Beowulf,  289-290. 

Bergen,  station  of  Hanseatic  League,  269; 
English  taxed  at,  271. 

Bernard,  Saint,  power  of,  164. 

"Bestiary,"  299-300. 

Bethlehem,  240,  241,  276. 

Bible,  scenes  on  tapestry,  86;  used  in  di- 
vination, 333;  price  of  a,  350;  scenes  from, 
shown  in  churches,  355. 

Birmingham,  fair  at,  260. 

Black  Death,  affects  villeinage,  121. 


Black  Friars,  189. 

"Black  Prince,"  306. 

Black  Sea,  262. 

Blood-letting,  318. 

Boiling  water,  ordeal  by,  48. 

Bologna,  university  at,  288. 

Boniface,    Saint,    in    Germany,    197-199; 

buried  at  Fulda,  202. 
"Book-learning,"  of  the  knight,  3. 
Books,  scarcity  of,  166,  282;  copying  of, 

166-168;  in  Alfred's  time,  282;  illumi- 
nated, 350-351- 
"Boon-works,"  114. 
" Boston"  65. 
Br assarts,  21. 

Brazen  head,  made  by  Bacon,  323-324. 
Bread,  various  sorts,  90;  used  for  plates,  90. 
Bremen,  joins  German  Empire,  275. 
Bridges,  why  built  and  cared  for,  hermits 

lived  beside,  179;  gilds  to  care  for,  232; 

without  piers,  predicted  by  Bacon,  328. 
Bristol,  a  staple  town,  265. 
Britain,  289;  Saxons  resisted  in,  294. 
Britons,  had  learned  Christianity,  195. 
"  Brother  Matteo,"  and  Saint  Francis,  184- 

185. 
Bruges,  Hanseatic  factory  at,  270;  English 

taxed  at,  271. 
Bruin,  the  bear,  299. 
Brunhild,  290. 
Bruno  of  Cologne,  founds  the  Carthusian 

Order,  158. 
Bull-baiting,  230. 
Burgundians,  slain  at  the  court  of  Attila, 

291. 

Burgundy,  romance  from,  301-302. 
"  By  the  faith  of  Rodrigo,"  292. 
Byzantine,  architecture,  340;  mosaic,  345- 

346. 

Cairo,  262. 

Calais,  citizens  of,  spared  by  Edward  III, 
306. 

Cambridge,  258. 

Cannon,  in  the  fourteenth  century,  67. 

Canterbury,  the  resort  of  pilgrims,  126, 
127,  128,  129;  missionaries  given  homes 
in,  196;  tavern  in,  220;  charity  in,  224;  a 
staple  town,  265;  shrine  at,  310. 

Canterbury  bells,  128. 

Canterbury  Tales,  pilgrims  described  in  the, 
125,  126;  214;  Chaucer  in  the,  310-311. 

Capricornus,  315. 


370 


Index 


Card-playing,  101. 

Carthusian  Order,  rule  of  the,  158-160;  of 
to-day,  160-161. 

Cassel,  200. 

Cassia,  supposed  origin  of,  332. 

Castellan,  60. 

Castile,  the  Cid  buried  in,  292. 

Castle,  development  of  the,  52;  description 
of  Chateau  Gaillard,  54-60;  methods  of 
attacking,  60-68;  description  of,  75;  daily 
life  in,  76-78;  feasts  in,  86-97. 

"Cat,"  64,  70. 

Cat,  in  cell  of  anchoress,  182. 

Catapult,  68. 

Catherine,  Saint,  88-89. 

Cellarer,  166,  170. 

Cervantes,  307. 

Chain  armor,  20. 

Chamberlain,  of  a  convent,  169. 

Chantor,  of  a  convent,  170-171. 

Chapter-house,  166. 

Charities,  of  convents,  170;  "God's  house," 
223;  "home"  of  Henry  VII,  223-224; 
giving  of  food,  224-225. 

Charlemagne,  the  sword  of,  25;  test  of  en- 
durance under,  47;  as  a  missionary,  199- 
203;  250;  and  the  schools,  278-279;  as  a 
student,  279-281;  in  romance,  292-293; 
sung  by  German  poets,  308;  receives  an 
organ  from  Constantine,  358. 

"Charter-house,"  English  corruption  of 
"Chartreuse,"  160. 

Chartres,  cathedral,  sculpture  in,  354. 

Chartreuse,  Grande,  founded  by  Bruno, 
I58-i59;  rules  of,  159,  160. 

Chateau  Gaillard,  description  of,  54-60; 
fall  of,  69-70;  75;  107.  ^ 

Chaucer,  describes  a  knight,  9,  23-24;  a 
monk,  27,  165;  pilgrims,  125-126,  129; 
214;  308;  and  the  Canterbury  Tales,  310- 
3 1 1 ;  on  a  learned  doctor,  3 1 8;  on  a  quack, 
326. 

Chausses,  19;  21. 

Checkers,  9,  98,  101. 

Cherry  tree,  experiments  on,  218-219. 

Chess,  4,  98,  165,  218;  chessboards,  9. 

Chester,  fire  rules  of,  209. 

Chichester,  a  staple  town,  265. 

Children,  1-3;  crusade  of,  143-146;  dedi- 
cated to  religious  life,  156;  often  flogged, 
276. 

Chillon,  Castle  of,  53. 

Chinese,  discovery  of  gunpowder  by,  327. 


Chivalry,  entering,  16;  worthiness  of  order 

of,  28;  last  relic  of,  152;  interest  in,  285. 

Christianity,   preached   in  England,    195- 

197. 

Christians,  of  Jerusalem,  welcome  pilgrims, 
133;  permitted  to  live  in  that  city,  136; 
sufferings  of,  137;  in  early  Ireland,  195; 
among  the  Romans  in  Germany,  197, 
and  in  Britain,  200;  Franks  had  become, 
199;  Saxons  became  by  Charlemagne's 
compulsion,  200. 

Christopher,  Saint,  legend  of,  178-179. 

Church,  pages  taught  to  respect  the,  4; 
sword  of  knight  to  defend  the,  15;  shares 
in  making  a  knight,  16;  forbids  priests  to 
"take  the  sword,"  21;  people  connected 
with,  escape  ordeals,  50;  decrees  the 
"Peace  of  God,"  and  the  "Truce  of  God," 
72;  establishes  "sanctuaries,"  73-74; 
holds  land,  107;  receives  fees  from  ten- 
ants, 112;  befriends  the  tenant,  119;  pil- 
grims protected  by,  132;  forbids  taxation 
of  Templars,  154;  excommunication  and 
interdict,  190-191;  attitude  to  heresy 
181-192;  establishes  the  Inquisition, 
192;  festivals  reckoned  by  astronomy, 
284-285,  313;  learning  centred  in,  285; 
art  centred  in,  345-358. 

Church  courts,  50. 

Cicero,  read  in  schools,  284. 

Cid,  sword  of  the,  25;  291. 

Cid,  The,  poem,  291. 

Cimabue,  the  work  of,  346;  348. 

Cistercians,  founding  and  rule  of,  161-164. 

Citeaux,  Cistercian  monastery  founded  at, 
162. 
leanliness,  lack  of,  82,  92,  116. 

Clermont,  council  at,  138,  161. 

Cloisters,  165-166. 

Cluniacs,  mode  of  life  of,  156-157,  164. 

Cluny,  rule  of,  156-157;  Congregation  of, 
157;  wealth  of,  161-162. 

"Coats  of  arms,"  24;  at  a  tournament,  37. 

Cock  fighting,  on  Shrove  Tuesday,  228; 
230. 

Cologne,  72;  Children's  Crusade  departs 
from,  144;  cathedral  at,  338,  344. 

Columbus,  at  La  Rabida,  168-169. 

Comets,  a  source  of  terror,  3 14. 

Commerce,  routes  of,  262-265. 

"ompurgators,  50. 

Congregation  of  Cluny,  157. 

Constable,  duties  of,  at  a  tournament,  42. 


Index 


Constantine,  builds  church  in  Constanti- 
nople, 356;  presents  organ  to  Charle- 
magne, 358. 

Constantinople,  crusades  strengthen  Latin 
power  in,  147;  Constantine  builds  Church 
of  Saint  Sophia  in,  338,  356;  "horses  of 
Saint  Mark"  taken  from,  341. 

Continent,  shrines  on  the,  130;  town  halls, 
of,  211-212;  "Rolands"  on,  250;  Saxons 
on,  289;  fear  lest  Turks  should  overrun, 

3*4- 

Convents,  hospitality  to  pilgrims,  132; 
abuses  in,  156;  of  Cluny,  156-157;  hold 
property,  156,  171-172;  of  Cistercians, 
162-164;  officers  of,  169-171;  accounts, 
171;  disputes  of,  172;  gifts  to,  173;  value 
of  work,  173-174.  Sff  Monasteries. 

Cookshop,  in  London,  222. 

Corn,  grinding,  ill,  172. 

"Coronal,"  32,  40,  42. 

Corpus  Christi  day,  craft  gilds  act  play  on, 
242-246. 

Cottages,  of  the  manor,  1 10. 

Coudiere,  21. 

Court  of  Lions,  342. 

Court  of  Love,  304,  308. 

Court  of  pieds-poudres,  250-252,  255. 

Courts,  of  the  manor,  115. 

Coventry,  mystery  plays  in,  244. 

Craft,  people  of  one  craft  live  on  one  street, 
247. 

Craft  gilds,  objects  and  powers  of,  235- 
238;  feast  days  of,  plays  acted  by,  238- 
239,  242-246;  existing  in  London,  246. 

Craftsmen,  how  to  become,  212;  live  near 
together,  247. 

Creation,  The,  mystery  play,  243. 

Crecy,  battle  of,  won  by  English  yeomen,  121. 

Cresset,  345. 

Crest,  on  helmets,  24;  worn  by  horses,  27. 

Cross,  "putting  on"  the,  141. 

Crucifixion,  The,  mystery  play,  243. 

Crusaders,  motives  of,  141;  children,  144; 
become  more  liberal,  148;  become  used  to 
luxuries,  147;  form  the  Order  of  Hospi- 
tallers, 150;  of  Templars,  152-158. 

Crusades,  effect  on  manor  system,  118,  146; 
the  first,  138-142;  later,  142-146;  results 
of,  146-148;  257;  tales  and  romances  of, 
301-302. 

Cuirass,  21. 

Cuisses,  21. 

"Curtains,"  54. 


"Custom  of  the  castle,"  29. 
Cymbals,  at  feasts,  93. 
Cyprus,  on  route  of  Pilgrims,  133;  Hospi- 
tallers establish  themselves  on,  152. 

"Dagger  of  mercy,"  22. 

Dais,  in  a  hall,  76. 

Damoiseau,  4. 

Dancers,  women,  at  feasts,  96;  at  fairs,  256. 

Dancing,  in  halls,  9,  96,  99,  101;  after  tour- 
naments, 46;  at  fairs,  256. 

Danes,  in  England,  281. 

Dante,  the  Divine  Comedy  of,  308-310; 
painted  by  Giotto,  348. 

Danube,  river,  commerce  on  the,  264. 

David,  name  chosen  by  Charlemagne,  280. 

"Dead  Sea  apples,"  300. 

Dead  Sea,  "Sir  John"  at  the,  300. 

Debate  of  boys  at  Smithfield,  224-226. 

De  Leon,  Ponce,  seeks  the  fountain  of  youth, 

325- 

"Demesne,"  112. 
Denis,  Saint,  palace  of,  360. 
Denmark,  Hanseatic  League  in,  269. 
Diaz,  Rodrigo  (the  Cid),  291-292. 
Diptychs,  249,  354. 
Dishes,  used  at  feasts,  90,  92. 
Divination,  various  methods  of,  333. 
Divine  Comedy,  The,  309. 
Doctor,  a  call  from,  316. 
Doctrinale,  text-book  of  grammar,  282. 
Dolensis,  Alexander,  author  of  the  Doc 

trinale,  282. 
Dominic,    Saint,   founds   the   Dominican* 

188,  193. 
Dominicans,   history  of,   188-189;   as   in 

quisitors,  192;  193. 
Don  Quixote,  ends  romances  of  chivalry, 

307-308;  366. 
Draining  soil,  rare,  117. 
Drake,  Joseph  Rodman,  23. 
Drawbridge,  54,  62,  70. 
Dress,  fashions  in,  78-82;  laws  regarding, 

78-79;    82-84;    shown    by    illuminated 

books,  350. 
Drinks,  90. 
Drum,  93,  358. 
"Dubbers,"  247. 
Ducking-stool,  on  a  manor,  115. 
Durindana,  sword  of  Charlemagne,  25. 


Easterling  (sterling)  money,  270. 
Edda,  296. 


372 


Index 


Edward  I,  founds  Hull,  207;  208. 

Edward  III,  spares  the  citizens  of  Calais, 
306. 

Egypt,  caliph  of,  133,  149. 

El  Cid,  291-292. 

Elixir  of  life,  286,  325,  328. 

Ellida,  vessel  of  Frithiof,  297. 

Eloy,  Saint,  gold  and  silver  work  of,  357. 

Embroidery,  in  churches,  357. 

Emma,  Queen  of  England,  undergoes  the 
ordeal,  48-49. 

Enamel,  used  in  church  decoration,  352. 

"Enchirius,"  330. 

"Enclosing"  of  a  recluse,  181. 

England,  54;  and  the  Peace  of  God,  72;  and 
the  right  of  sanctuary,  74;  dress  and  cus- 
toms in,  78-85;  divided  into  fiefs  by 
William  the  Conqueror,  106;  houses  on 
the  border  of,  108;  weaving  of  fine  wool- 
ens introduced  into,  120;  wins  at  Crecy, 
Peasants'  revolt  in,  theoretical  owner- 
ship of  land  in,  122;  132;  pilgrims  return 
to,  137;  hermits  in,  180-181;  Minorites 
called  Gray  Friars  in,  188;  Christianity 
taught  in,  195-197;  chartered  communi- 
ties in,  208;  rules  of  towns  in,  209;  town 
halls  of,  212;  money-lenders  in,  216; 
flowers  in,  218;  mystery  plays  in,  243; 
fair  in,  258-259;  wool  raised  in,  259;  ex- 
ports "staples,"  265-266;  "Merchants 
Adventurers  "  in,  266;  Hanseatic  League 
in,  270-275;  schools  of,  277,  278;  281; 
the  coming  of  William  the  Conqueror 
to,  358;  pageant  at  return  of  Henry  VI 
to,  363-365. 

English,  make  treaty  with  Hanseatic  League, 
271;  famed  for  gold  and  enamel  work, 
356,  for  embroidery,  357. 

English  language,  281. 

Ensign,  25. 

Epidemic,  laid  to  stars  or  evil  spirits,  317. 

Espringal,  68. 

Ethelbert,  King,  listens  to  Saint  Augustine, 
196. 

Etzel  (Attila),  291. 

Europe,  92;  Black  Death  in,  121;  140; 
aroused  by  fall  of  Jerusalem,  142;  affected 
by  the  crusades,  146-148;  saved  from  the 
Mohammedans,  147;  148;  contributes 
to  hospitals  in  Jerusalem,  149;  Hospital- 
lers in,  150;  Houses  of  Templars  in,  153; 
traversed  by  mendicant  orders,  189; 
the  Gospel  preached  in,  193;  towns  in, 


206-209;  fairs  held  in,  252;  commerce  of 
western,  261;  goods  brought  to,  262- 
265;  universities  founded  in,  286-288; 
Saracens  bring  manuscripts  into,  313; 
terrified  by  a  comet,  3 14. 

"Evil  eye,"  320. 

Excalibur,  sword  of  King  Arthur,  25. 

Excommunication,  132,  190. 

Exeter,  a  staple  town,  265. 

"Extents,"  112,  115. 

Externes,  taught  free,  285. 

Extravagance  in  dress,  78-79,  82-84. 

Fabliaux,  told  by  trouveres,  307. 

Fairs,  permits  to  hold,  252-254;  description 
of,  254-256;  benefits  of,  256-258;  famous 
fairs,  258-262. 

Falconry,  rules  of,  8;  taught  to  girls,  98. 

Falcons,  8. 

Farming  implements,  117. 

Feasts,  86-90;  mingling  of  splendor  and 
filth,  92. 

"Feudal  system,"  102-107. 

"Feudal  tenure,"  102. 

Fief,  104;  must  supply  service  of  a  man,  105. 

Finland,  raising  the  wind  in,  329. 

Fire  laws,  of  Chester,  209;  of  London,  220. 

Fitzstephen,  William,  describes  London, 
220,  222,  and  its  amusements,  229-231. 

Flanders,  tapestry  woven  in,  86;  manufac- 
tures of,  258;  265. 

Flogging  of  children,  276,  285. 

Flood,  The,  mystery  play,  241. 

Florence,  wins  wealth,  264;  Dante  pointed 
out  in,  309-310. 

Flute,  93,  358. 

Flying  buttresses,  in  Gothic  architecture, 

344- 

Flying  horse,  name  of  inn,  214. 

Food,  given  in  charity  in  London,  223-224. 

"  Fool,"  dress  and  ability  of,  95-96. 

"Foreign  staple,"  266. 

Forks,  not  used,  5;  brought  from  Italy,  92. 

Fortifications,  early,  52. 

Fra  Angelico,  work  of,  348-349. 

France,  5;  England  holds  possessions  in, 
54;  supports  the  Peace  of  God,  72;  tapes- 
try woven  in,  86;  loses  the  battle  of  Crecy, 
121;  shrine  in,  130;  route  to  Palestine 
through,  133;  pilgrims  return  to,  137; 
aroused  to  a  crusade,  138;  Stephen  preach- 
es in,  143-144;  burning  of  Templars  in, 
154;  Order  of  Grammont  and  Carthusian 


373 


Index 


Order  founded  in,  158-160;  Saint  Patrick 
in,  194;  towns  in,  208;  chartered  com- 
munities in,  208;  sends  to  wine  fairs,  258; 
265;  Hanseatic  League  in,  270;  epidemics 
laid  to  Jews  in,  317;  sculpture  in  churches 
of,  354;  gold  and  silver  work  in,  357; 
pageants  in,  360-363. 

Francis  of  Assisi,  Saint,  rule  and  character 
of,  183-188;  love  for  animals,  186-188. 

Franciscan  nuns,  188. 

Franciscans,  work  of,  186;  189;  as  inquisi- 
tors, 192;  193. 

Franks,  become  Christians,  199. 

Fratres  Minores,  185. 

Frederick  Barbarossa,  of  Germany,  leads 
crusade,  142. 

"Free  town,"  207. 

Freiburg,  why  so  named,  207. 

French   language,   adopted   by   Normans, 

r.  3°7'         ^ 

Fresco,  346. 

Friars,  founded  by  Saint  Francis,  i83;pov- 

erty  of,  184-185, 186;  in  Canterbury  Tales, 

2  20. 

Fnthiof,  story  of,  296-298. 
Froissart,  and  his  Chronicles,  304-306. 
Frumenty,  88. 
Fulda,  202. 
"Furcifer,"92. 
Fustian,  23,  24,  125,  worn  by  Cistercians, 

162. 

Gaelic,  in  Irish  schools,  277. 

Galahad,  294,  296. 

Ganges,  river,  supposed  marvels  of,  329. 

Garden  of  Eden,  The,  mystery  play,  239. 

Gardens,  in  mediaeval  towns,  218-219. 

Gargoyles,  356. 

Garonne,  river,  191. 

Gauntlets,  21. 

Gemini,  315. 

Geneva,  Lake,  53. 

Genoa,  264. 

Genouilliere,  21. 

George,  Saint,  13. 

German,  280. 

German  Ocean,  freed  from  pirates,  268- 
269. 

Germans,  of  Hanseatic  League,  disliked  in 
England,  271. 

Germany,  and  the  Peace  of  God,  72;  pil- 
grims set  out  from,  133;  pilgrims  return 
to,  137;  Nicholas  preaches  in,  144;  Irish 


priests  in,  197;  Saint  Boniface  in,  197- 
199;  towns  in,  207;  Hanseatic  League  in, 
268;  source  of  Nibelungenlied,  290;  satir- 
ized in  the  "beast  epic,"  299;  poets  in, 
308;  epidemics  laid  to  Jews  in,  317. 

Gibraltar,  Straits  of,  265. 

Gilds,  show  kindness  to  pilgrims,  131;  care 
for  bridges,  179;  masterpiece  presented 
to,  213;  232-246;  act  plays,  238-246; 
lose  power,  244-245. 

Giotto,  work  of,  348. 

Gipon,  gipoun,  23,  24,  125. 

Girls,  teaching  of,  97-99,  285. 

Glass,  colored,  351-352. 

Godfrey  of  Bouillon,  chosen  ruler  of  Jeru- 
salem, 141-142. 

"God's  House,"  endowed  by  Richard  VVhit- 
tington,  223. 

"God  wills  it!"  war-cry  of  crusaders,  140, 
141,  144 

Gonfanon,  fastened  to  spear,  25. 

Gospel  of  Saint  John,  translated  by  Bede, 
278. 

Gospels,  used  in  ordeals,  48;  oaths  taken 
upon,  102;  clasped  by  Boniface,  199. 

Gothic  architecture,  342-345,  351;  designs, 
349;  sculpture  in,  354~3SS;  qualities  of, 
55- 

Grail,  the  Holy,  sung  by  German  poets,  308. 

Grammont,  Order  of,  158. 


355-356. 

loly,  sun 
~   *       ',f,  IC8. 
Grande  Chartreuse,  lite  at  the,  158-159; 


(£74 


of  to-day,  160-161. 
Gray  Friars,  188. 
Greece,  262. 
Greek,  in  Irish  schools,  277;  studied  by 

Charlemagne,  280. 
Greeks,  mosaics  made  by,  345. 
Greenland,  forbidden  to  the  English,  271. 
Greenwich,  fair  at,  259. 
Grendel,  290. 
Griffins,  356. 

Guest  house,  of  a  convent,  166. 
Guitar,  93. 
Gunther,  290,  291. 

Habergeon,  19,  24. 

Hagen,  291. 

Hair,  cut  at  conferring  of  knighthood,  14; 

dressing  of  the,  81. 
Hall,  of  castle,  description  of,  85;  as  living 

room,  97-101. 

Hamburg,  joins  German  Empire,  275. 
Handbells,  93. 


Index 


Hansards,  in  Bergen,  269;  in  Bruges,  270; 
and  English  make  treaty,  271;  at  the 
Steelyard,  in  Norway,  272-273. 

Hanseatic  League,  258;  account  of  the,  268- 
275. 

Haroun  al  Raschid,  137. 

Harp,  headdress  shaped  like,  81;  93,  358. 

Hauberk,  19. 

Hawking,  7-8;  38;  "pictured  in  tapestry, 
86. 

Hawks,  7-8. 

Hawthorne,  on  Fra  Angelico,  349. 

Headdresses,  80-8 1. 

Heimskringla,  204,  296. 

Helge,  297. 

Hellespont,  crossed  by  Turks,  3 14. 

"Hell  mouth,"  241-242. 

Helmets,  kinds  of,  18-19;  crests  on,  24; 
significance  of,  25;  gloves  or  ribbons  hang- 
ing from,  43. 

Henry  II,  and  the  monks  of  Winchester, 
165;  grants  permit  for  fair,  259. 

Henry  III,  gives  food  in  charity,  224;  pre- 
sents a  cope,  357. 

Henry -VI,  "subtlety"  at  coronation  of,  89; 
pageants  of,  362-365. 

Henry  VII,  endows  a  house,  223. 

Henry  VIII,  91. 

Heraldry,  24-25. 

Heralds,  announce  tournament,  34;  pro- 
claim rules  of  tournament,  42;  duties  of, 
at  tournaments,  43,  44,  46. 

Heresy,  191. 

"Heriot,"  105,  121. 

Hermitage,  endowment  of,  180. 

Hermits,  175-181;  of  romance,  175-176; 
dress  and  occupation  of,  177;  at  bridges, 
179-180;  support  of,  180. 

Herod,  176;  in  mystery  plays,  239,  241,  242. 

Hesse,  sacred  oak  of,  200. 

Holy  City,  taken  by  Seljukian  Turks,  137; 
138;  152. 

Holy  Grail,  story  of  the,  294-296;  sung  by 
German  poets,  308. 

Holy  Innocents  Day,  children  flogged  on, 
276. 

Holy  Land,  pilgrims  to,  123,  131,  133-134; 
Turks  to  be  driven  from,  140;  German 
children  set  out  for,  144;  remains  in 
hands  of  Mohammedans,  146;  hospitals 
built  in,  150;  Hospitallers  carry  pilgrims 
to,  152;  houses  of  Templars  in,  153,  154; 
crusades  seek  rescue  of,  118. 


Holy  Sacrament,  partaken  of  by  aspirant  to 
knighthood,  15. 

Holy  Sepulchre,  133;  to  be  rescued,  138; 
Godfrey  made  "Baron  and  defender  of," 
142;  Hospitallers  vow  to  fight  for,  153. 

"Homage,"  how  performed,  102;  value  of, 
103;  1 06. 

Homer,  name  chosen  in  Charlemagne's 
school,  280. 

Horn,  93. 

Horoscopes,  of  children  calculated,  315- 
316. 

Horse-market,  at  Smithfield,  230. 

Horses,  trappings  of,  knights'  love  for,  26- 
27. 

"Horses  of  Saint  Mark,"  340. 

Hospitality  of  the  castle,  94,  99;  of  the  con- 
vent, 170. 

Hospitallers  of  the  Order  of  Saint  John, 
founded,  150;  151-152;  fortify  Malta, 
patrol  the  Mediterranean,  152;  154. 

Hospitals,  built  in  Jerusalem,  149-150. 

House  of  Lords,  wool-sack  in,  259. 

"Houses,"  of  astrology,  315-316. 

Hrothgar,  290. 

Hull,  founded  by  Edward  I,  207. 

Humber,  river,  207. 

"Humors,"  321-322. 

Huns,  slay  Burgundians,  291. 

Hunting,  taught  to  pages,  7;  scenes  from, 
pictured  on  tapestry,  86;  98;  by  a  monk 
in  Canterbury  Tales,  165. 

Iceland,    forbidden   to   the   English,    271; 

source  of  the  Heimskringla,  296. 
Illuminating,  349-351. 
India,  goods  from,  262;  new  route  to,  264; 

supposed  marvels  of,  329. 
Infirmarius,  170. 
Ingeborg,  296. 
Inquisition,  192. 
Interdict,  190. 
Ireland,  Saint  Patrick  in,  193-195;  schools 

of,  277-278;  supposed  marvels  of,  328- 

329- 

Irminsul,  destroyed  by  Charlemagne,  200. 

Iron-Beard,  205. 

Isabella  of  Bavaria,  pageants  on  her  enter- 
ing Paris,  360-362. 

Isegrim,  the  wolf,  299. 

Italians,  learned  mosaic  making  from 
Greeks,  345. 

Italy,  and  the  Peace  of  God,  72;  beds  ele- 


375 


Index 


vated  in,  78;  forks  used  in,  92;  contrib- 
utes to  hospitals  in  Jerusalem,  149; 
Inquisition  in,  191-192;  productions  of, 
258;  epidemics  laid  to  Jews  in,  317;  "tes- 
selated  floors"  in,  345. 

'affa,  on  route  of  pilgrims,  133. 
ames,  Saint,  129. 
arrow,  school  at,  278. 
erome,  Saint,  281. 

erusalem,  pilgrims  in,  132-137,  161;  cap- 
tured by  crusaders,  141;  ruled  by  God- 
frey of  Bouillon,  captured  by  Moham- 
medans, 142;  sought  by  Children's  Cru- 
sade,  145;  hospitals  built  in,   149-150; 
defended     by    Hospitallers,    151;    152; 
Templars  in,  153;  the  way  to,  300. 
Jester,  95-96. 
Jesus,  pilgrims  in  land  of,  133-134;  144; 

184,  294. 

"Jewel,"  of  Alfred  the  Great,  356. 
Jewelry,  sumptuary  laws  concerning,  83-84; 

jewels  in  churches,  356,  357. 
Jews,  epidemics  laid  to,  317. 
Joan  of  Arc,  battles  with  Henry  VI,  363. 
John,  king  of  England,  loses  Norman  cas- 
tles, 69,  107. 
Jordan,  river,  134. 
Joseph  of  Arimathea,  brings  Holy  Grail  to 

Britain,  294. 

Journeyman,  becomes  master,  213. 
Jousts,^  29-33;  at  tournaments,  38. 
Joutf  a  r  outrance,  32. 
[out*  a  plaisancf,  32. 
oyosa,  sword  of  Charlemagne,  25. 
udas,  in  the  mystery  play,  244. 
ugglers,  at  feasts,  95,  96;  guests  at  con- 
vents, 168;  at  fairs,  256. 
Jupiter,  316;  image  of,  as  philter,  320;  336. 
Jupon,  23. 

Justice,  sought  by  appeal  to  arms,  47. 
Justinian,  builds  Saint  Sophia,  338. 

Keep,  of  Chateau  Gaillard,  58-59. 

Kent,  363. 

Kiev,  visited  by  Pilgrims,  130. 

Kings,  in  feudal  system,  102-104;  to  re- 
ceive "aids,"  104;  right  of  appeal  to,  105, 
115-116;  199-205. 

Knight,  training  of,  1-2;  must  obey  lady- 
love; 4;  must  not  attack  page,  6;  will  not 
eat  with  unknighted  son,  9;  ceremonies 
to  make,  13-17;  armor  of,  18-25;  captor 


knighted  by,  22;  wears  scarf  or  glove  of 
lady-love,  23;  weapons  of,  25;  seek  ad- 
ventures, 28-33;  at  a  tournament,  36- 
47;  sumptuary  laws  affecting,  84;  will 
contest  in  song  with  anyone,  304. 

Knights  of  the  Temple,  153.  Sff  Templars. 

"Knight's  fee,"  70. 

Knight-errant,  29,  30,  32,  99. 

Knighthood,  conferred  on  battlefield,  14; 
disappears,  121. 

Koran,  quotations  on  walls  of  Alhambra, 
341;  forbids  copying  animal  life,  342. 

Kriemhild,  290,  291. 

Ladies,  umpires  at  tournaments,  40,  43- 
44;  served  by  pages,  4;  teach  pages,  5-6; 
share  in  conferring  knighthood,  16;  em- 
broider knight's  baldric,  23;  dress  of,  79- 
82;  amusements  of,  98-99.  See  Women. 

"Lady-love,"  of  knight,  2,  5-6;  of  a  squire, 
10;  scarf  or  glove  of,  worn  by  knight,  23; 
beauty  of,  upheld  in  joust,  32-33. 

Lances,  in  tournaments,  42;  gloves  or  rib- 
bons hang  from,  43. 

Land,  under  feudal  system,  102-122;  in 
hands  of  Church,  106,  162,  170-174;  be- 
longing to  king,  122;  held  by  women,  115; 
cultivation  of,  little  understood,  1 10, 1 17- 
118. 

Langland,  William,  118;  thought  to  have 
been  villein,  120. 

Langue  d'oc,  poets  of,  303,  308. 

Langue  d'ceil,  303,  307,  308. 

La  Rabida,  Columbus  entertained  at,  169. 

Last  Judgment,  The,  243. 

Last  Supper,  cup  used  at,  294. 

Latin,  schoolboys  cap  verses  in,  225;  debate 
in,  226;  angels  sing  in,  240;  the  book  lan- 
guage, 277;  spoken  by  Charlemagne, 
280;  281;  English  are  taught,  282;  Latin 
Psalter  used  as  textbook,  282;  how  taught, 
282-284;  dullness  of  writings  in,  302;  303. 

Launfal,  Sir,  I. 

Leipsic,  fair  at,  260. 

Leo,  315- 

Leoghaire,  king  in  Ireland,  and  Saint  Pat- 
rick, 194-195- 

Leon,  292. 

Lepers,  hospitals  for,  7.23. 

Leprosy,  remedies  for,  317. 

"Liege  lord,"  106. 

Lincoln,  spurriers'  gild  in,  236;  staple  town, 
265. 


376 


Index 


Lincoln  Cathedral,  vestments  in,  357. 
Lippe  River,  baptism  of  Saxons  in,  200- 

201. 

Lists,  40;  given  over  to  squires,  46;  99. 
Literature,  of  common  folk,   289;   heroic 

poems,  289-292;  romances,  292-299;  302. 
Little  Flowers  of  Saint  Francis,  184. 
Lombards,  arms  of,  216. 
Lombardy,  on  route  of  pilgrims,  133. 
London,  129;  moat  of,  219-220;  pests  of, 

220;  dangers  of,  cookshop  in,  222;  churches 

and  charities  of,  224-227;  amusements 

of,  228-23 1 ;  gilds  now  in,  246. 
London  Bridge,  pageant  crosses,  363. 
Londoners,  gardens  of,  219;  220;  and  the 

pigs,  230-231;  at  the  Steelyard,  272. 
Longfellow,  144,  146,  203,  204,  205;  on  the 

Alhambra,  341. 
Lord  Mayor,  procession  of,  246;  receives 

gifts  from  Hansards,  273. 
Lorraine,  Duke  of  (Godfrey  of  Bouillon), 

141. 
Louis,  Saint  (Louis  IX)  of  France,  punishes 

heretics,  192. 

Louis  XI,  borrows  a  book,  351. 
Love-songs,  squires  taught  to  compose,  9- 

10. 

Lowell,  i. 
Lute,  93. 

Machicolations,  59,  64. 

"Madonna,"  of  Cimabue,  346. 

Malta,  fortified  by  Hospitallers,  152. 

Mandeville,  Sir  John,  300. 

Mandrake,  belief  concerning,  332. 

Mangonel,  68. 

Manor,  life  on,  102-122,  206;  cultivation 
of;  107-108,  no,  115,  117;  buildings  on, 
108-110;  division  of  land,  no-in;  obli- 
gations of  tenants  on,  111-112;  obliga- 
tions and  perquisites  of  villeins,  112- 
114;  land  held  by  women,  115;  legal 
questions  on,  115-116;  officers  of,  116; 
independence  of,  116-117;  held  by  con- 
vents, 171. 

Manor-house,  108-110. 

Manor  system,  disappears,  121-122;  influ- 
ence on  the  law,  122;  effect  of  crusades, 
on,  146. 

Mantelet,  65. 

Marbles,  played  by  boys,  2. 

Maria  Novella,  Saint,  Church  of,  346. 

Mark's,  Saint,  Church,  338;  340-341. 


Markets,  how  established,  248-249;  courts 
of,  250;  forbidden  during  fairs,  253. 

Marmora,  Sea  of,  262. 

Martel,  20. 

Master,  journeyman  becomes  a,  213. 

Masterpiece,  213. 

Matilda,  Queen,  and  the  Bayeux  Tapestry, 
358. 

"Matteo,  Brother,"  184-185. 

Medicine,  taught  to  girls,  98;  position  of 
stars  important  in,  316-317;  prepared  by 
alchemists,  322. 

Medicines,  218;  absurd,  317. 

Mediterranean  Sea,  136;  patrolled  by  Hos- 
pitallers, 152;  Saracens  living  about,  312. 

Merchandise,  how  carried  over  Europe, 
262-265. 

Merchant  gilds,  functions  and  wealth  of, 
233-234;  decline  of,  246. 

Merchants,  traveling,  100,  168;  212;  homes 
of,  213-217;  at  fairs,  252-255,  passim; 
of  England  grow  stronger,  274;  pilgrims, 
as,  134;  build  hospitals  for  pilgrims,  149. 

"Merchants  Adventurers,"  266-267. 

"Merchants  of  the  Staple,"  265-266. 

Michael,  Saint,  13;  shrine  of,  130. 

Michel,  Mont  Saint,  shrine  on,  130. 

Milan,  surpasses  Genoa,  264. 

Military  service,  limitations  of,  104. 

Milky  Way,  called  "Walsingham  Way" 
in  England,  130. 

Minnesingers,  of  Germany,  318. 

Minorites,  dress  of,  188. 

Minstrels,  93-95;  entertained  at  convents, 
168;  at  fairs,  256;  gilds  of,  232. 

Miracle  plays,  238.   See  Mystery  plays. 

Missionaries,  193-205;  kings  as,  199-205. 

Moat,  54,  56,  57,  62,  75,  no;  of  London, 
219-220. 

Mohammed,  136. 

Mohammedans,  treatment  of  Christians  by, 
136-137;  Christians  aroused  againstr 
138-140;  regain  Jerusalem,  142;  hold  the 
Holy  Land,  146;  restrained  by  crusades, 
147;  visited  by  Franciscans,  186;  forbid- 
den to  copy  animal  life,  342. 

Mohammedanism,  learned  of,  by  crusaders, 
190. 

Monasteries,  150,  wealth  of,  156;  did  not 
run  themselves,  168-171;  accounts  of,  171; 
outside  dealings  with,  171-173;  value 
of,  173-174;  destroyed  by  Danes,  281: 
studying  in,  312. 


377 


Index 


Monastery,  life  in  a,  168-173. 

"Money-fiefs,"  104. 

Monks,  Hospitallers,  149-153;  Templars, 
153-154;  Benedictines,  154-156;  Clun- 
iacs,  156-157;  Order  of  Grammont,  157- 
158;  Carthusians,  158-161;  work  of,  173; 
183. 

Moors,  flee  from  body  of  the  Cid,  292;  build- 
ings of,  341-342. 

Mosaics,  345-346. 

Murder  of  Abel,  The,  mystery  play,  243. 

Music,  at  feasts,  93-95;  taught  to  girls,  98; 
101;  on  pilgrimages,  126;  taught  in 
schools,  284;  cultivated  by  knights  and 
commons,  304;  by  all,  308;  instruments, 

of,  93,  358-359. 
Musicians  gallery,  76,  93. 
"Mystery  of  the  rivers,    7,  8,  98. 
"Mystery  of  the  woods,"  7. 
Mystery  plays,  character  of,  238-242;  acted 

by  craft  gilds,  242-246;  300;  307. 

Napoleon,  carried  "horses  of  Saint  Mark" 

to  Paris,  341. 
Nasal,  1 8. 

"Nation,"  association  of  students,  287. 
Natural  history,  supposed  marvels  of,  329- 

Netherlands,  weaving  in,   266;   Hansards 

in,  270;  scene  of  Nibelungenlied,  280. 
Neustadt,  why  so  named,  207. 
Newcastle,  a  staple  town,  265. 
"New  town,"  207. 
New  World,  169. 
Nibelungenlied,  290-291. 
"Nibelungen  Treasure,"  290,  291. 
Nibelungs,  290-291;  308. 
Nicholas,  preaches  Children's  Crusade,  144- 

Hf 

Nijni-Novgorod,  fair  at,  260-262. 

Nile,  river,  262. 

Noah,  in  mystery  plays,  241. 

Noah's  ark,  as  origin  of  Gothic  architec- 
ture, 344. 

Noah's  wife,  in  mystery  plays,  241. 

Normandy,  54,  106,  130;  pilgrims  set  out 
from,  133;  trouveres  in,  307. 

Normans,  in  France,  307. 

Northmen,  come  for  baptism,  202. 

Norway,  King  Olaf  returns  to,  203-204; 
Hanseatic  League  in,  269;  272-273. 

Norwich,  a  staple  town,  265. 

Notre  Dame,  Cathedral  of,  361. 


Nottingham,  fair,  /amous  for  geese,  259. 

Novgorod,  Hanseatic  League  in,  270. 

Novices,  169,  171. 

Numerals,  284. 

Nuns,  vows  required  of,  150;  children  taught 

by,  156,  169,  285. 
Nursing,  taught  to  girls,  98. 

Oak  of  Thor,  destroyed  by  Saint  Boniface, 

198. 

Oblati,  educated  free,  285. 
Odin,  198,  204. 
Olaf  Trygvasson,  King  of  Norway,  as   a 

missionary,  203-205. 
Old  French,  303. 

Oliver,  duel  of,  with  Roland,  293. 
"OUmc,"  277-278. 

Ordeals,  47-49;  churchmen  escape,  50-51. 
Organs,  358-359- 

Orkney  Islands,  Frithiof  visits  the,  297. 
Orosius,  translated  by  Alfred,  282. 
"Our  Lord's  bread,"  90. 

Page,  training  of,  l-io;  games  of,  2-3;  in- 
door life  of,  3^6,  8-10;  outdoor  life  of, 
6-7. 

Pageant  (wagon),  243;  (a  show),  in  France, 
360-363;  in  England,  363-365. 

Palace  school,  of  Charlemagne,  280-281. 

Paladins,  292-294. 

Palestine,  140,  142;  route  to,  132;  Turks  not 
driven  from,  146;  vessels  carry  men  to, 
147,  152. 

"Palmer's  Way,"  130. 

Palmers,  why  so  called,  134. 

"Paradise,"  in  pageant  of  Henry  VI,  364. 

Parapet,  59. 

Paris,  students  in,  287;  university  at,  288; 
pageant  in,  360;  "horses  of  Saint  Mark" 
carried  to,  341. 

Paris,  University  of,  books  loaned  by,  351. 

Paternoster,  medicinal  use  of,  317. 

Patrick,  Saint,  preaches  in  Ireland,   193- 

195- 

Paul,  Saint,  Cathedral  of,  226. 

"Paul's  pigeons,"  226. 

"Peace  of  God,"  72. 

Peacock,  served  at  feasts,  89;  prize  for  suc- 
cess at  the  quintain,  228. 

Peasants'  Revolt,  121. 

Pedlars,  at  convents,  168;  248. 

Peers,  of  Charlemagne,  292-294. 

"Penitent  Man  and  Women,"  188. 


378 


Index 


Pennons,  12;  sleeves  worn  as,  23;  fastened 
to  spears,  25. 

Pepin,  at  Alcuin's  school,  280. 

Persian  Gulf,  262. 

"Pessoners,"  247. 

"Pestours,"  247. 

Peter,  Saint,  in  mystery  plays,  242. 

Peter,  Saint,  mystery  play,  244. 

Peter  the  Hermit,  preaches  the  first  cru- 
sade, 137-138;  161;  leads  crusaders,  140. 

Philip  II,  King  of  France,  captures  Chateau 
Gaillard,  69-70,  107;  leads  crusade,  142. 

Philip  the  Fair  (Philip  IV),  accuses  the 
Templars,  154. 

Philippa,  Queen,  saves  citizens  of  Calais, 
306. 

Philosophers,  imagine  rather  than  observe, 

"Philosopher's  stone,"  285;  search  for,  325- 
326. 

Philters,  319-320. 

Phoenix,  331-332. 

"Physic"  in  Piers  Plowman,  318. 

Physician,  visits  of,  316;  description  of, 
318. 

Pieds-poudres  (pie  powder),  court  of,  250. 

Piers  Plowman,  118,  180,  318. 

Pigs,  "Anthony's,"  226. 

Pigs,  London  laws  concerning,  230-231. 

Pilgrimages,  why  made,  123-124;  how 
made  agreeable,  126;  129;  on  the  Conti- 
nent, 130;  to  the  Holy  Land,  131-134; 
advantages  of,  136;  to  convents,  206; 
cause  of  fairs,  252. 

Pilgrims,  visit  castles,  100;  the  ideal,  124; 
in  Canterbury  Tales,  125-126;  at  shrines, 
126,  127,  128,  130;  sham  pilgrims,  130- 
131;  privileges  of,  131-132;  troubles  and 
advantages  of,  133-137;  tell  of  hospitals 
in  Jerusalem,  149;  carried  to  the  Holy 
Land  by  Hospitallers,  152;  enslaved  by 
Turks,  152. 

"Pilgrim's  Road,"  130. 

Pillory,  on  a  manor,  115. 

Piracy,  a  respectable  calling,  268. 

Pirates,  of  northern  Africa,  152;  Saint 
Patrick  captured  by,  193;  subdued  by 
Hanseatic  League,  268-269. 

Plate  armor,  21. 

Plays,  239-246;  acted  by  priests,  239;  in 
hands  of  gilds,  242-244;  become  a  bur- 
den, 244-245. 

"Pliny's  Doves,"  346. 


Ploughing,  117. 

Poems,  Beowulf,  289-290;  Nibelungenlied^ 

280-291;  The  Cid,  291-292;  language  of, 

303;  general  love  of,  304,  308. 
Pointed    arch,    characteristic    of    Gothic 

architecture,  342-343. 
Poitiers,  battle  of,  306. 
'Poor  Ladies"   (Franciscan  nuns),  188. 
"Poor  Men  of  Lyons"  (Waldenses),  191. 
Popinjays  (parrots),  98. 
Portcullis,  56. 
Portugal,  productions  of,  258;  vessels  sail 

from,  264;  265;  Hanseatic  League  in,  270. 
Postern  gate,  360. 
Prester  John,  329. 
Prior,  head  of  a  convent,  157,  169. 
Prizes,  given  at  tournaments,  44-46. 
Prussia,  130. 
Psalms,  used  in  ordeals,  48,  50;  chanted  by 

Benedictines,  155;  medicinal  use  of,  317. 
Psalter,  Latin,  used  as  a  textbook,  282. 

Quadrivium,  284-285. 

"Queen  of  Love  and  Beauty,"  44. 

Quintain,    described,    10-11;    peacock    as 

prize  for  success  at,  228. 
Quintilian,  read  in  schools,  284. 

Raleigh,  Sir  Walter,  poem  by,  129. 

Ralph  Bogis,  enters  Chateau  Gaillard,  69- 
70. 

"Rat,"  64. 

Reading,  perhaps  taught  to  pages,  3;  per- 
haps to  girls,  98. 

Recluses,  life  of,  181-183;  The  Ancren 
Riwle  written  for,  299. 

Red  Sea,  262. 

Reeve,  of  a  manor,  116. 

Refectory,  of  convents,  166. 

Relics,  at  Kiev  and  at  Treves,  130;  in  con- 
vents, 169;  reliquaries  for,  354. 

"Relief,"  paid  by  vassals,  105. 

Rest  stations  for  pilgrims,  132. 

Reynard  the  Fox,  299. 

Rhine,  Saint  Boniface  on  the,  199;  commerce 
on  the,  264;  treasure  of  the  Nibelungs  sunk 
in  the,  291. 

"Rhine  gold,"  290. 

Rhodes,  Hospitallers  establish  themselves 
on,  152. 

Rhone,  river,  191. 

Richard  the  Lion-hearted,  builds  Chateau 
Gaillard,  54,  58;  69;  leads  crusade,  142; 


379 


Index 


the  ideal  knight,  148;  as  a  troubadour, 
304. 

Richard  II,  dress  of,  84. 

Right  of  sanctuary,  73-74. 

Robbers,  danger  of,  255. 

Rockets,  points  of  lances  covered  by,  42. 

Roland,  sword  of,  25;  duel  of,  with  Oliver, 
293. 

Roland,  The  Song  of,  294. 

"Rolands,"    250. 

Romance  languages,  302-303. 

Romances,  of  knighthood,  292-296;  of  clas- 
sical times,  298-299;  of  chivalry,  307. 

Romanesque,  architecture,  342,  344;  art, 
qualities  of,  355. 

Romans,  vanquished  by  Arminius,  archi- 
tectural remains  of,  in  England,  197; 
200;  206;  language  in  lands  ruled  by,  302. 

Rome,  128;  pilgrims  stop  at,  134;  mission- 
aries in  England  from,  196. 

Roncesvalles,  death  of  Roland  at,  293. 

Round  Table,  of  Arthur,  294. 

Runes,  319. 

Russia,  130;  commerce  of,  262,  264;  Han- 
seatic  League  in,  269-270. 

Sacristan,  of  a  convent,  169. 

Saga  of  King  Olaf,  203. 

Saladin,  character  of,  148. 

Salerno,  university  at,  288. 

Samuel,  name  chosen  in  Charlemagne's 
school,  280. 

Sanctuaries,  73-74. 

Santiago  da  Campostella,  visited  by  pil- 
grims, 128. 

Saracens,  118,  176;  in  Spain,  285;  romance 
of,  302;  learning  of,  312;  buildings  of, 
341-342,  361. 

Satan,  the  clown  of  the  mystery  plays,  241; 
believed  to  be  in  children,  276;  source  of 
sorcery,  334. 

"Saucy  Castle,"  54,  63.  Sff  Chateau  Gail- 
lard. 

Saxons,  in  England,  listen  to  Saint  Augus- 
tine, 195-197;  in  Germany,  baptized, 
200;  revolt  against  Charlemagne,  202; 
289;  resisted  by  Arthur,  294. 

Scallop  shells,  worn  by  pilgrims,  128-129. 

Scandinavia,  source  of  Nibelungenlied,  290. 

Scapulary,  of  Carthusians,  159. 

"Scarping,"  57. 

Schools,  in  convents,  167,  169,  173,  206;  of 
London  churches,  224-227;  268;  flogging 


of  boys  in,  276;  of  Ireland,  277-278;  at 
Jarrow,  278;  of  Charlemagne,  278-281; 
course  of,  284-285. 
Science,  312-337;  obstacles  to  progress  of, 

Scotland,  194. 

Scrip,  124,  125,  129,  132. 

Sculpture,  in  churches,  354-355. 

Scutcheon,  worn  by  minstrels  of  nobles,  93. 

Sea-fights  between  Hospitallers  and  Turks. 

152. 

Seamless  coat,  at  Treves,  130. 
"Secular  arm,"  192. 
See-saw,  played  by  boys,  2. 
Seine,  river,  54,  287. 
Seleucia,  262. 
Seljukian  Turks,  abuse  of  Christians  by, 

"SeUen,"  247. 

Serfs,  freedom  of  pleasing  to  God,  1 19. 

Service,  need  of,  102;  military  required,  104. 

Serving  at  table,  by  pages,  5;  by  squires,  9. 

Shakespeare,  jests  at  the  "puny  tilter  "  42; 
the  "fools  "of,  96. 

Shepherds,  The,  239-240. 

Shield,  significance  of,  25. 

Shipbuilding,  encouraged  by  crusades,  147. 

Shirts,  preserved  by  pilgrims,  134. 

Shoes,  with  pointed  toes,  84. 

Shops,  in  towns,  252. 

Shrines,  visited  by  pilgrims,  123;  of  A  Beck- 
et,  127;  tokens  of,  128-129;  on  the  Con- 
tinent, 130;  fairs  held  at,  252-253. 

Siege  Perilous,  294. 

Siege  tower,  62. 

Siegfried,  290,  291. 

Signs,  214,  215. 

Sigurd  Ring,  King,  297. 

Silks,  147. 

Sinbad  the  sailor,  300. 

Singing,  9-10;  at  feasts,  93-95;  on  pilgrim- 
age, 126;  by  wandering  students,  288;  by 
knights  and  commons,  304;  songs  of 
Court  of  Love,  308. 

Skald,  203. 

Slane,  Hill  of,  195. 

Slaughter  of  the  Innocents,  The,  239. 

Slaves,  108. 

Sleeves,  worn  as  pennons,  23,  43. 

Smithfield,    schoolboys'   contests    at,    225; 

horse-market  at,  230;  fair  at,  260. 
"Solar,"  HO. 


380 


Index 


"Solvent,  universal,"  235,  334. 

Song  of  Roland,  The,  292-294. 

Sophia,  Saint,  mosque  of,  338-339. 

Sorcerer,  danger  to  a,  333-334;  clergy  for- 
bidden to  visit,  336. 

"Sotelte"  (subtlety),  88. 

Spain,  horses  from,  26;  and  the  Peace  of  God, 
72;  128;  towns  in,  207;  chartered  com- 
munities in,  208;  sends  wine  to  fairs,  258; 
Hanseatic  League  in,  270;  Saracens  in, 
285;  source  of  The  Cid,  291;  the  Alhambra 
in,  341-342. 

Spaniards,  revere  the  Cid,  292. 

Spear,  significance  of,  25;  "bated,"  32. 

Spices,  147. 

Spinning,  taught  to  girls,  97;  on  manors,  117. 

Spurs,  significance  of,  25;  golden  spurs  badge 
of  knighthood,  16,  22. 

Squire,  duties  within  the  castle,  8-10;  ex- 
ercises of,  10-n;  duties  in  battle,  11-13; 
becomes  a  knight,  13-17;  attends  knight, 
28,  43;  sumptuary  laws  affecting,  83;  in 
the  Canterbury  Tales,  125. 

"Squire  of  the  body,"  n. 

Staff,  carried  by  pilgrims,  124,  125,  129,  136. 

"Staple  towns,"  265. 

Staples,  265-266. 

Statues,  in  churches,  on  biers,  as  reliquaries, 

354- 

Steelyard,  271-272;  attacked  by  mobs,  274. 
Stephen,  founder  of  the  Order  of  Gram- 

mont,  158. 
Stephen,  preaches  Children's  Crusade,  143- 

146. 

Sterling  money,  270. 
Steward,  of  manors,  116. 
Stilts,  used  by  boys,  2. 
Stortebeker,  execution  of,  268-289. 
Stourbridge,  fair  at,  258. 
Streets,  of  mediaeval  towns,  217;  occupied 

by  people  of  one  craft,  247;  of  fairs,  254. 
Students,  behavior  of,  286-288. 
Subtlety,  88. 

Sumptuary  laws  in  England,  79,  82-84. 
Surcoat,  23;  device  embroidered  upon,  24; 

knight  protected  by,  28;  151. 
Surgery,  taught  to  girls,  98. 
Swan,  recipe  for  serving,  89-90;  165. 
Sweden,  Hanseatic  League  in,  269. 
Swithin,  Saint,  49. 
Sword,  significance  of,  25;  at  tournaments, 

40;  forbidden  to  clergy,  107. 
Syria,  Franciscans  visit,  185. 


Tabard,  23,  214. 

Tabard  Inn,  resort  of  pilgrims,  126,  214. 

Table,  customs  at,  90. 

Talismans,  318-320;  forbidden  to  clergy, 
336. 

Taillefer,  sings  the  Song  of  Roland,  294. 

"Talliaunders,"  247. 

Tambourine,  93. 

Tapestry,  85-96;  method  of  making,  357- 
358;  the  Bayeux,  359. 

Tavern  signs,  214-216. 

Tax,  of  "heriot"  and  "relief,"  105;  for  rest 
stations,  132;  paid  by  Christians  in  Jeru- 
salem, 136;  paid  to  convents,  171-172; 
in  towns,  207;  in  Spain,  208;  to  clean 
London  moat,  219-220. 

Templars,  origin  and  history,  153-154. 

Tenants,  free,  of  manors,  108;  duties  of, 
111-115;  lives  of,  116-118;  means  of  es- 
cape from  manor  life,  120-122. 

Terrier,  of  a  convent,  170. 

"Tesselated  floors,"  345. 

Tests  of  innocence,  47-49. 

Thames,  river,  281;  naval  contests  on,  228. 

Thanet,  Island  of,  Saint  Augustine  lands  on, 
196. 

Thomas  a  Becket,  relics  of,  at  Canterbury, 
126,  127,  128;  shrine  of,  197;  220;  310. 

Thor,  198,  204,  336. 

Three  Kings,  The,  mystery  play,  243. 

Tigris,  river,  262. 

Tilting-ground,  30. 

Tizona,  sword  of  the  Cid,  25. 

Tollbooth,  251-252. 

Tolls,  at  markets,  252;  at  fairs,  253-254; 
demanded  by  nobles,  255;  at  bridges,  259. 

Toulouse,  Count  of,  protects  Albigenses, 
191. 

Tournaments,  34-47;  proclamation  of,  34; 
preparations  for,  36-42;  description  of, 
43-47;  99;  followed  by  Court  of  Love, 
304;  described  by  Froissart,  3-4. 

Towns,  on  convent  land,  171-172;  manor 
villages  become,  206;  customs  peculiar 
to,  209;  becoming  cities,  210;  private 
property,  210;  walls  and  buildings  of, 
210-212;  streets  of,  217-218;  gardens 
in,  218-219;  gilds  in,  232. 

Trappings  of  horses,  26-27,  43- 

Traveler's  tales,  300-302,  328-329. 

Trebizond,  262. 

Trebuchet,  67. 

Trenchers,  90-91. 


381 


Index 


Treves,  relic  at,  130. 

Triptychs,  349~35S- 

Trivium,  284. 

Troubadours  and  their  songs,  303-304. 

Trouveres,  303;  in  northern  France,  306- 
307. 

Truce  of  God,  72-73. 

Trumpet,  93,  358. 

Turks,  capture  Constantinople,  137; 
Christians  aroused  against,  138-140; 
met  by  Hospitallers,  151,  152;  enslave 
pilgrims,  152;  154;  cross  the  Hellespont, 
314;  capture  Constantinople,  340. 

Tybert,  the  cat,  299. 

Tympanum,  carved  in  relief,  354. 

Undermining,  63-64. 
United  States,  121. 
"Universal  solvent,"  325,  334. 
Universities,  founding  of,  286,  312;  students 

of,  286-288;  specialize,  288. 
Urban  II,  Pope,  addresses  council  at  Cler- 

mont,  137-14°;  161;  forbids  all  but  strong 

men  to  go  on  crusade,  140. 

Vagrancy,  laws  against,  131. 

Valet,  4. 

Vassals,  homage  of,   100;  military  service 

and  "aids"  of,  104;  right  of  appeal  of, 

105;  106. 
Vatican,  chapel  of,  Fra  Angelico  asked  to 

paint,  349. 
Venetians,  build  Church  of  Saint  Mark, 

340-341- 
Venice,  on  route  of  pilgrims,  133;  Eastern 

goods  brought  to,  262;  loses  power,  264; 

Church   of    Saint  Mark   at,   338,   340, 

341- 

Venus,  316. 

Veronica,  worn  by  pilgrims  to  Rome,  128. 

"Verrours,"  247. 

Vigil  of  arms,  kept  by  aspirant  to  knight- 
hood, 15. 

Villanueva,  why  so  named,  207. 

Villefranche,  why  so  named,  207. 

Villeinage,  disappears,  121. 

Villeins,  on  the  manors,  108;  114;  116;  es- 
cape from  forced  labor,  119-122;  as  cru- 
saders, 141;  well  treated  by  monks,  173. 
pay  money  dues,  146. 

Villeneuve,  why  so  named,  207. 


Viol,  98. 
Violin,  93,  95. 
Virgate,  in. 

Volga,  river,  merchants  meet  on,  260. 
Voyages  and  Travels  of  Sir  John  Mande- 
ville,  300. 

Waag,  river,  commerce  on,  264. 

Waldenses,  191. 

Walsingham,  130. 

"Walsingham  Green  Way,"  130. 

"Walsingham  Way,"  English  name  for 
Milky  Way,  130. 

Walter  the  Penniless,  leads  crusaders,  140. 

Warfare,  taught  to  girls,  98. 

"Wastel  bread,"  90. 

Wat  Tyler,  rebellion  of,  271. 

Waxen  image,  as  cause  of  death,  321. 

Weapons,  of  knight,  significance  of,  25-26. 

Weaving,  in  halls,  97;  on  manors,  117;  of 
fine  woolens  introduced  into  England, 
1 20;  in  convents,  186;  in  the  Nether- 
lands, 266. 

Westminster,  a  staple  town,  265. 

Whittington,  Richard,  220;  endows  alms- 
house,  223. 

William  the  Conqueror,  grants  fiefs,  106; 
259;  and  the  Song  of  Roland,  293-294; 
on  the  Bayeux  Tapestry,  358. 

Wimple,  80. 

Winchelsea,  history  of,  208. 

Winchester,  fair  at,  259;  a  staple  town,  265. 

Windows,  210;  in  castles,  78;  in  churches 
of  Cluniacs,  162;  in  cell  of  recluse,  182;  in 
towns,  210;  few  in  Gothic  churches,  351. 

Witchcraft,  as  cause  of  illness,  320-321. 

"Witches'  Sabbath,"  334. 

Wittekind,  becomes  a  Christian,  202-203. 

Witto,  courtier  of  Charlemagne,  280. 

Women,  hold  land  on  manors,  115;  hard 
work  of,  118;  on  a  crusade,  141;  in  reli- 
gious orders,  150,  188. 

Wool,  England's  source  of  wealth,  259; 
most  important  staple,  266. 

Wool-sack,  seat  of  Lord  Chancellor,  259. 

Writing,  in  convent  book-rooms,  157,  166- 
167. 

York,    gild    disagreement    in,    237-238;    a 

staple  town,  265;  home  of  Alcuin,  280. 
Younger  Edda,  296. 


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